Corruption
by Gemmi92
Summary: "Are you implying that he is corrupt?" she snapped out, her eyes glaring at the woman stood opposite her in the office as she sighed softly, shrugging gently before looking back to her intern. "I don't know," she admitted. "But, I do know that a relationship with him isn't something which you should be chasing. I can tell you that much." Crane/OC
1. Chapter 1

"Madison!"

The young woman turned around, hearing her name being called out as she looked through the hallway of the courthouse which had been situated in City Hall. She wouldn't say that she had been through a long morning. Yes, she had to sit in numerous hearings and watch her mentor speak, but, it wasn't difficult. The streets of Gotham were full of corrupt cops, judges and lawyers. Yet none of them were found in trial. They were all found moving through the city freely. It was the people who were forced into a life of crime who suffered. Gotham wasn't what it used to be.

"Yes, Miss Dawes?" Madison asked, handing the elder woman the coffee which she had requested from the coffee shop around the corner. Rachel was stood in her smart skirt suit, her hair neatly coiffed and pushed back in comparison to Madison's unruly brown locks due to the wind from outside.

"I need you to do me a favour," Rachel said and Madison noticed the brown file in her hand by her side as she sipped on her coffee, allowing a large 'ah' to sigh past her lips at the taste of freshly ground caffeine as she did so. "Thanks for the coffee."

"You're welcome," Madison said, managing to be polite as she wondered what favour was to be required from her. "What can I do for you?"

"There's this file that needs signing by the new head psychiatrist at Arkham. Apparently, he's testifying at some hearings with his expert opinion, but, he needs to sign these before he can go any further. You know; terms and conditions. That sort of thing," Rachel shrugged and Madison took the brown folder which was being pushed towards her as she juggled it in her hands along with her long red coat and she remained silent.

"And why can't this doctor come down here and sign the papers?" Madison enquired and Rachel looked at her with slight scepticism before tucking a loose strand of hair behind her ear.

"He said he was too busy. They need filling out today and registering as soon as possible. That's the problem." Rachel declared, her lips forming into a tight line. "If you could get down to Arkham and have him sign these then I'd greatly appreciate it." Rachel forced a smile onto her face and Madison took a moment to think about where she was going.

"Arkham?" she checked and Rachel nodded. "That's in the Narrows."

Rachel frowned at hearing her speak like that before wondering if it would have just been quicker to the job herself.

"I'll do it if you're not comfortable with going down there," Rachel said, her voice curt as she made a grab back for the folder. Madison pulled it away from her reach, her head shaking back and forth as she did so.

"No," she said. "It's fine. I was just checking."

"Right," Rachel said, sipping her coffee again and checking her watch, remembering she had to be in court soon before she adjusted her skirt and spoke to her intern again. "So, he's called Doctor Crane. If you could do it as quickly as possible before giving the papers to Carl then that would be appreciated. I've got to go. I'll talk to you later."

Madison watched as the woman mentoring her rushed off down the corridor and she sighed to herself, pushing a hand through her hair before moving out of the corridors of the old building and then down to the car park where her small silver car sat. She threw the coffee she had brought herself into the trash, suddenly losing her need for caffeine. Finally, she managed to unlock her car before she settled herself into it, throwing her red coat onto the empty chair beside her and then placing the file on top of it next to her satchel.

The drive down to Arkham went well. The weather was becoming cooler, autumn seemed to be approaching them in Gotham, but, it was still pleasant. Madison turned the radio on to allow herself to be distracted instead of looking at the sights in the Narrows which she was passing. The metal grate on the bridge complained loudly as her car drove over it and she followed the sign for Arkham, peering around as the air seemed to suddenly chill around her.

Once she pulled up, she grabbed onto her folder and satchel, flinging it onto her shoulder before slamming her car door shut and locking it quickly, making sure it was locked before she moved up the main steps of the Asylum. The reception area was quiet, nothing to be heard except for the clicking of her heels on their tiled floor as she sought out the reception desk, the folder hugged against her chest in the cold environment.

"Excuse me?" Madison spoke, her voice hushed as the woman looked up from her computer and Madison flashed her a smile. "Hi, I'm Madison Walters from the DA's officer. I'm supposed to be here to see Doctor Crane about some paperwork?" she checked and the woman looked back to her computer, more intrigued with the gum which she was chewing as she clicked on various buttons at her keyboard.

"There's nothing in the schedule about Doctor Crane meeting with some DA," the woman replied, her boredom lacing the air as her eyes looked at Madison and the young woman ran her hand through her hair. She did it all the time when nerves got to her.

"I'm supposed to be here. Is there any chance that I can speak with Doctor Crane?"

"He's busy all day."

"I'm aware, hence why I had to come down here," Madison said, her politeness leaving her voice. "Can you page him or something?"

"He could be with a patient," she replied and Madison inhaled sharply.

"I'll just wait in his office." Madison declared and the receptionist shook her head at that. It was clear this one wasn't just going to go away. But, she wasn't letting her into his office either. Doctor Crane would have a fit if he heard about that. Then again, he may not complain once he saw her. No one really knew what he was like.

"I'll page him," the receptionist finally managed to move from her seat and Madison nodded contently at hearing that, looking around the empty corridor as she did so. It took another moment before the woman came back to her, still chewing her gum as she settled back into her seat.

"He said to wait in his office," she declared.

"And that would be where?" Madison wondered. It wasn't like there were signposts in this place.

"Down the hall and to the left," the receptionist said and Madison knew that was the end of that conversation. She walked quickly down the corridor, finding the office which contained Doctor Crane's name before she stepped inside, shutting the door behind her and looking around. The room was small, a desk and a leather chair sat in front of the window and paperwork was neatly stacked on top of it. Madison placed her satchel by the wooden chair designed for visitors opposite the desk and she dropped the folder onto the wood, making sure she didn't disrupt his paperwork. A small water cooler sat in the corner and photo frames lined the wall, informing everyone just how educated and intelligent Doctor Crane was.

Madison looked at the photo frame behind his desk on the wall, leaning against the side of it as she did so. She was so intrigued that she didn't hear the door open behind her.

"You must be Miss Dawes?" a sudden voice asked and Madison jumped upright, turning around and managing to lose her footing as she tripped around the corner of his desk and stumbled to stay upright. She looked towards the man who had entered the room and she tried to contain the red embarrassment from her cheeks.

"No," she said quickly as he shut the door, remaining stood by it as he eyed her with suspicion. "I'm Madison. Madison Walters. I told the woman at reception who I was...I didn't just sneak in..."

"I never suggested that you had," he replied, his brow arched as he watched the young woman place her hands behind her back. She took in his appearance, everything from his dark hair to his neatly polished shoes. It was clear that he was a professional in his occupation. "I was expecting Miss Dawes."

"She was busy," Madison shrugged as Doctor Crane moved around the other side of the desk to sit in his chair, motioning his hand to the free one opposite him as he sat back, lacing his fingers together and watching her as she sat down, her eyes looking to the floor as she did so. "She sent me."

"I see," Jonathan replied. "And we've already established your name."

"And I know yours," Madison replied and Jonathan smirked. Of course she did.

"Considering you're here to see me then I would find it most irregular if you did not know of my name," he responded to her, his voice laden with humour and Madison had the feeling she was being mocked by him.

"Well, this is the file. It just needs the paperwork signing," Madison said, sliding the brown paper across to him as he placed his glasses further onto his nose, bending down and looking at it as he did so.

"I see," Jonathan mumbled, pulling a pen from his pocket. "Miss Dawes had more important things to do then to come down here and see me in person and so she sent her assistant."

"I'm not her assistant," Madison responded, slightly insulted he would suggest such a thing as he continued to grin at the paperwork, his neat scrawl gliding over the page as he did so. "I'm her intern."

"Ah," Jonathan spoke. "That makes sense too."

"What?" Madison wondered and Jonathan sat back in his seat, suddenly closing the file shut and sliding it back across the desk to Madison who remained confused.

"I am taking it that you also do her filing for her? Along with the fetching of coffee, of course?" Jonathan checked and Madison remained mute, her silence speaking volumes.

"They are jobs which need to be done," Madison shrugged, trying to be nonchalant as his chuckle sounded around the room once again.

"Of course," he agreed. "I am sure Miss Dawes could do them, too. She's just putting you to good use considering she doesn't see you actually becoming a DA of high quality like what is required in Gotham."

Madison stopped checking through the file which she had begun to read, making sure that he had signed it in every necessary place as her eyes glanced back up and into his and he remained straight faced, not showing any emotion until he shrugged gently.

"I'm a Psychiatrist," he informed her. "I notice these things."

"Or," Madison said, her throat dry all of a sudden, "she could be easing me into the job."

"Debateable," Jonathan declared.

"Anyway," Madison said, shaking her head and standing up, slinging her bag onto her shoulder and picking the files up as she straightened out the grey dress which she wore. "Thank you for signing these, Doctor Crane. I understand how busy your day must be."

"You're polite, too," Jonathan observed standing up and walking around his desk, pulling a plastic cup from out of the cupboard beneath his desk and then filling it up with water. "Being polite never helps you to survive in the DA's office."

"Maybe your secretary could learn a thing or two about manners, Doctor Crane," she informed him and the psychiatrist looked at her, a brow arched to the line where his dark hair flopped onto his forehead and Madison clenched her hands into fists. "And maybe you could pick some up somewhere along the line."

Jonathan watched as she stormed from the room, slamming the door shut behind her and he held the cup of water to his lips, a small smirk forming there as he thought about what he had just witnessed.

...

A/N: I've already done one Crane/OC story and I loved it so much that I thought I would try another one under different circumstances. Anyway, reviews are appreciated so do let me know what you think, please!


	2. Chapter 2

"Miss Walters."

Madison turned around after hearing Carl Finch call her name and she stood tall, looking at him with a smile on her face. She'd just returned from Arkham Asylum after speaking with Doctor Crane and she was pretending not to let his words get to her. It was failing. Even Finch could see that the large smile plastered onto her face was a fake. He stepped back for a moment, arching a brow as the brown file hung by his side.

"Yes, Mr Finch?" she enquired from him, folding her arms, her coat draped over her hands as she did so.

"These papers which you went to give Doctor Crane haven't all been signed," he informed her and she felt her jaw drop, her lips returning to their previous scowl as Carl opened the document and showed her the top piece of paper which was still blank. "It was a simple job, Madison," he informed her and she shook her head, snapping the file back from him as she did so.

"That asshole," she mumbled under her breath, slamming the folder shut and Carl scoffed at her words and she shook her head, looking back up to his shocked expression. "Not you."

"Very well," Finch responded. "Is everything okay?"

"Peachy," Madison said, the smile coming back onto her face as she did so. "I'll go and get him to sign it at the end of the day and have the papers brought back on my way home."

"I can always ask someone else to do it," Finch informed her and she shook her head.

"I'll do it," she promised him and turned on her heel before making her way down the corridor and back to the small office which she shared with Rachel. She slammed the door shut, throwing her satchel onto the floor by the small desk and she set about stomping around the room, slamming files back into place and gathering evidence for Rachel as she did so.

"What has the filing cabinet done to you?" Rachel's voice suddenly entered the office as she shut the door, placing her briefcase onto her desk and falling into her leather chair as Madison slammed another drawer to the steel cabinet.

"Am I really just doing these jobs because you can't see me going anywhere here?" Madison wondered, her voice curt and harsh as she spoke to the woman mentoring her. Rachel coughed gently, almost choking on the banana which she had begun to eat before her eyes found Madison's narrowed green ones.

"Excuse me?" Rachel wondered and Madison softened up slightly, pushing a shaking hand through her hair before Rachel leant back in her seat, lacing her fingers together after dropping her banana onto her desk.

"I'm sorry," Madison apologised. "It's just that when I went to Arkham...well...Doctor Crane told me that I'd only been sent because you wanted to get rid of me because you saw me as being useless. He said that he was a psychiatrist and noticed these things."

"And you believed him?" Rachel wondered and Madison shrugged.

"I've been thinking about what he said all afternoon," she admitted to Rachel who nodded at the spare seat opposite her desk. Madison sunk down into it, her arms resting on the edges of wood before she dropped her temple down onto her left hand, a smile of disbelief escaping her lips as she did so. "I must sound crazy."

"You do," Rachel assured her. "Why did Doctor Crane say that to you? Did you provoke him?"

"No!" Madison snapped out, her head moving back up straight before it shook from side to side. "I just asked him to fill out the paperwork and he began to tell me how I was simply an assistant to you and had no potential as a DA!"

"He had no right to do that to you," Rachel assured her. "Who does he think he is?"

"He's a pompous ass," Madison spat out. "Look, I'm sorry for snapping at you-"

"-No," Rachel shook her head. "Don't be sorry. It is the first sign of real emotion which you've given me and you've been working here for three weeks."

Madison blinked profusely whilst Rachel grinned to herself and sighed, her nimble fingers tucking her hair behind her ear as she did so.

"You're a pleasant girl," she informed Madison. "You're polite and well mannered. I've never seen any spark from you. I've never seen you want to become a DA. You've helped me tremendously, but, you need to have passion to succeed in this job."

"You don't think I have it?" Madison arched a brow and Rachel shrugged nonchalantly.

"I've just seen it now," she reminded her. "I had been worried that you didn't have what it took. I know that I should have been giving you more of a chance, but, you've done just fine completing the tasks I have set you."

"So he was right," Madison said, her hands clenching into fists by her side as she did so.

"Prove him wrong," Rachel urged her. "If you're going to survive here then flattering smiles aren't going to get you anywhere, okay?"

"I see," Madison agreed and Rachel studied her expression as her intern turned away for a second.

"Prove it to me that you're good enough to be here."

...

Madison had never taken work home with her before. But, that night, she picked up the case notes on the robbery which Rachel was looking into and she intended to digest them. She intended to pick something out which could help. Firstly she had to go to the Asylum and get Doctor Crane to finish off his signing. She didn't know whether he had missed that sheet of paper out on purpose or whether he had truly forgotten about it. Either way, she was annoyed.

"I need to see Doctor Crane," Madison demanded as soon as she stood at reception and the same woman from that dinnertime looked up to her and rolled her eyes.

"Didn't I tell you before that he was busy all day?" she wondered and Madison nodded in agreement. The woman had told her that.

"It didn't stop you before though, did it?" Madison replied and the woman blinked profusely. "I'll just go and wait in his office."

The receptionist began her weak argument as Madison picked her feet up from the floor and moved swiftly down to his office, settling herself in the chair opposite his before placing the paperwork back onto the wood, folding her legs over and waiting for him to enter.

"Miss Walters," his cold voice greeted her as he closed the door softly, making his way around the desk to sit back down in his chair. Madison watched him as a knowing smile spread onto his face. "Did you need something?"

"You forgot to sign a clause," she spoke, nodding to the paper and he bowed his head to look at it. "I'd appreciate it if you hurried up. I do have a home to go to."

"I see," Jonathan agreed, taking his pen out and pretending to read through the black words against the white paper. "So, in order to annoy you I simply have to tell you the truth."

"You weren't," Madison responded quickly. "You don't know anything about me and what does it even matter to you if you annoyed me?"

"I simply take an interest in the lives of others, Miss Walters," he informed her, his glass sliding down his nose as Madison took a deep breath. "I never meant to offend you."

"You didn't," she denied.

"Of course not," sarcasm radiated through his voice whilst she scowled at him, biting down on her tongue to keep herself from snapping something at him.

"As I said," Madison drawled, "I'd prefer not to prolong my stay here. I have to go home."

"Let me guess," Jonathan said; his voice a slight sneer as he arched a brow, "you have some jock of a boyfriend who is waiting to take you on a date."

"For a psychiatrist, your deductions are quite inaccurate," she taunted him and he shook his head.

"They're always accurate," he hissed gently to her.

"In this case they're wrong," she assured him. "I don't have time for boyfriends."

"How lucky the male gender is to hear that," Jonathan whispered, still looking at the paper as Madison's cheeks turned red with anger.

"What is your problem with me?" she snapped at him. "I came here and I was polite to you when I first met you. You've been nothing but a complete ass to me."

"An ass?" he wondered, his brows rising again as he looked at her over the top of his glasses and the blush on her cheeks deepened as she took in his look of amusement. "Did you just call me an ass?"

"What if I did?" she wondered and he chuckled darkly. "You have no right to talk down to people."

"You have no right to go around and accuse people of being an ass, Miss Walters. May I remind you who I am," he spoke, clearing his throat as his ice blue stare glared at her. "I'm the head of this Asylum and you're an intern. You tell me who is in charge here?"

His question was intended to be rhetorical and that it was. A smug grin formed onto his lips as Madison felt herself shrink into her chair and he signed the paper, pushing it back across the desk to her.

"All it would take would be one little phone call to Mr Finch and your career is over. Let me assure you of that."

"You wouldn't," she said and he grinned, his cold fingers lacing together as he leant back in his seat.

"Don't challenge me," he informed her. "Now, I think you should go before you say something which you regret."

"You're completely obnoxious," Madison said, standing up and grabbing onto the paper, stuffing it back into the folder which she had bought, her hands shaking through anger as she felt his gaze settle onto her. He watched how she straightened out her dress and tossed her hair over her shoulder before grabbing her satchel and she glared at him. "You've signed everything and that is all we have to say to each other."

"Do you think so?" he wondered, the curve of his brow coming into play as Madison nodded strictly at him.

"I know so," she spoke, her chin held high. "Now, good day, Doctor Crane."

He failed to hold back the smirk which formed onto his face. His power play had scared her and she was being civil so he didn't say anything to her boss.

"Good day, Miss Walters," he replied, remaining seated as she stormed out of his office for the second time that day.

...

A/N: Thank you to Mockingbird's Purity, Eva Sirico and Arridle Ascare for reviewing. Let me all know what you think so far!


	3. Chapter 3

"You don't have any evidence withheld on the Martins case, do you?" Madison smirked as she sat at the dinner table that evening and looked at the young man who was sat opposite her, a smirk on his face as he shook his head. He continued to prod his fork into his pasta Bolognese as she did the same, her eyes occasionally glancing onto the paper next to her dinner.

"You know that I'm a cop," he replied. "We're not supposed to tell you anything or withhold evidence."

"I know what you Gotham cops are like," Madison snorted and he rolled his eyes, taking a sip of his water before running a hand through his short, thick black hair as he did so.

"The majority of us are as corrupt as you DA's," he deadpanned and Madison dropped her knife and fork in a dramatic manner and placed her hand over her chest, forcing herself to grimace.

"How could you?" she responded and he laughed again at her.

"Quite easily, Madison. We both know what this city is like," he said and she shrugged, picking her fork back up and twirling the spaghetti around it. "It's gotten worse."

"What are you two barking about?" a new voice spoke as a woman entered the kitchen, two glasses in her hands as she moved over to the sink and began to rinse them through, flicking the switch on the kettle as she did so. "Your father and I are trying to watch GGN."

"Sorry, mom," Madison apologised. "Danny and I were talking about work."

"I see," her mother replied. "I also see that you've brought work home."

"Yes," Madison nodded, allowing her mother to pick up the brown file which she had taken with her. The elder woman wouldn't understand any of it so there was no use in not letting her look. Even Madison was struggling with some of it. "Miss Dawes needs help with her case. I said that I'd take a look."

"You haven't brought work home in the last three weeks," Danny commented, his green eyes staring into his sisters as he did so and she shrugged at him.

"I'm trying to make a good impression."

"That's more like it!" her mother called out, squeezing her daughter's shoulder and pointing at her son before she moved back to the kettle and poured tea bags into the cups. "And don't you dare think about bringing work home. The last thing that we need is criminals filling this household."

"Funnily enough, mom, we're not allowed to do that," Danny dryly said back to her and she pursed her lips to stop herself from smirking.

"Good," she said and poured hot water into the mugs. She turned back around to look at her two children before smiling proudly like only a parent does. "Look at you two. A DA in the making and a police officer."

"Yeah, yeah," Danny shrugged off and Madison remained silent, eating her pasta as she did so. "Don't go all embarrassing on us now, mom. Go back to dad and watch your TV show."

"Yes," she nodded hastily in agreement. "Yes...I will...I'll leave you two to it."

She scurried from the room whilst Danny rolled his eyes at his kid sister and she crossed her legs under the table and he eyed her with intrigue.

"So, why have you brought work home?" Danny asked her. "You've never been bothered before."

"I decided that I maybe should be bothered," she replied back to her brother and he leant back, holding his water in his hands whilst he felt his stomach expand due to fullness. "If I want to succeed then filing isn't going to get me anywhere, is it?"

"No," Danny admitted. "It isn't."

"So, there you go," she replied. "I need to prove that I can be a DA."

"You just seem...more determined...and wound up...you've been stabbing your spaghetti to within an inch of its life," Danny noted. "I don't like the thing...too messy to eat...but I've never attacked it like you just did."

"It's nothing," Madison replied in a mutter, still too intrigued on the work by her side as she said it. "I'm fine."

"Yeah, you're my sister, Mad. I know when something isn't right."

"I just had a run in with someone who wound me up," Madison admitted. She knew there was no use in hiding anything from Danny. "The head at Arkham Asylum didn't get along with me."

"What happened?" Danny sighed and Madison stood up, picking her dish up along with his before starting to wash them.

"We just had a disagreement, Danny. It was nothing, honestly."

"Who was he?"

"Doctor Crane," she mumbled. "He's just become the head of Arkham. It's nothing, Dan. Honestly."

"Do you need me to shoot the guy, Mad's?" he asked and Madison smiled at him and shook her head, turning back to look at her brother.

"I'm fine. It's fine. I promise, Dan."

...

"Madison, I believe you've already met Doctor Crane."

Madison felt her jaw clench and her chest tighten as she stood up from the seat which she was sitting. Carl Finch had said that he required her presence in his office, but, she didn't know what for. She'd sat down and waited for him to return with some guest. She didn't expect it to be the Doctor from Arkham.

"Miss Walters," Jonathan said wryly, containing the smirk which he wanted to pass his lips as he did so. He offered her his hand, showing his professionalism on the matter and Madison ground her teeth together, resting her fingers against his as she did so.

"Doctor Crane," she forced on her fake smile so Finch didn't suspect anything. "Pleasure."

"As always," Crane replied and Finch clapped his hands together.

"Right. Seeing as you two know each other then this should be fairly easy. Miss Walters will take you to the courtroom and show you the ropes. Where you sit...what happens and the types of questions we tend to ask. It's all pretty straightforward."

"I see," Crane replied with a stern nod.

"Well, I shall leave you two to it. Courtroom seven is free, Madison."

"Okay," she replied and Finch opened the door to his office again, allowing the two of them to leave and begin their walk down the hallways.

"You're very good at being a fake," Crane suddenly informed her, walking close to her side so that his voice was relatively low as she hugged the folder to her tightly, taking a deep breath before glaring up at him and ascending the staircase.

"I was being pleasant. It is something which you're not very good at," she informed him and he chuckled, placing his free hand into his pocket and swinging his briefcase in the other one.

"I don't aim to please others," he replied to her. "The facade which you have must really have helped during college. Why wouldn't it? It would help you to be extremely popular and get anything which you want."

"And this is court number seven," Madison simply snapped, not biting his bait in the form of taunts. She pushed the door open quickly and allowed him to enter first. He looked around the room and sighed to himself. How droll it was. She moved to the front of the court, pushing the swinging gates open and pointing to the seat behind the desk where the prosecution sat.

"You'll sit there when giving evidence to prosecute and then on the other side when defending," she informed him before motioning to the dock. "And I'm sure that even you know what that is."

"Of course," he nodded in agreement. "So, are you still completing mundane jobs?"

"I prefer to keep my work life away from strangers," she informed him. "Did you come here with the intent to annoy me or to actually listen to what happens during a trial?"

"Everyone knows what happens when you are in court," he rolled his eyes back at her as he did so. "I'm merely asking you a question."

"I told Miss Dawes what you said to me," Madison said back to him, leaning against the judge's desk, her eyes glowering over to where Jonathan stood. He'd placed his briefcase onto the prosecution table and was perched on the edge of it.

"How middle school of you," he grinned. "It is like telling a teacher and being a snitch."

"She said to ignore you." Madison shrugged back to him and he remained silent, continuing to watch her. "I don't know what your issue is with me. I just want you to leave me be so that I don't end up saying something which I regret."

"You have quite the temper on you when you need it, don't you?" Jonathan grinned and she shrugged, trying to be calm and nonchalant.

"Not really," she assured him. "I just dislike certain people."

"I'm hurt."

"Obviously," Madison said with equal sarcasm. "Sit down and we'll talk about the questions which tend to be asked."

"Fine," Jonathan agreed with her and he sat down at the chair by the desk and Madison took the seat next to him. He turned his head to the side, looking at her as she rested her elbow onto the desk and dropped her head into it and flicked through the file. He took in how she pushed her brown hair behind her ear and ran her hands down the material of her red dress.

"So, when prosecuting then it is important that you agree with us and stick to any conversations you previously might have had with any of us," she informed him and he pushed his glasses further onto his nose as he did so. He remained listening to her as she told him what was required from him, but, he had other plans. Well, the voice in his head did, anyway.

"Fascinating," he informed her, looking anything but enthralled as she finished their conversation and turned her head to the side to look at him.

"Right," Madison agreed in a drawl. "So, this is us done."

"Not really. Mr Finch has informed me that you'll be briefing me on the Martins case," Jonathan said and he audibly grinned at seeing her disappointed face. "You've been working on it with Miss Dawes, have you not?"

"Yes," she admitted.

"Good. I'd love to stay and chat about it now," he said and Madison wondered if he ever dropped the sarcasm from his voice as he spoke to her. "But, I do have a job. Mr Finch has organised reservations at the Ivory this evening. He said it is a lawyer's favourite meeting place. I personally think he is trying to keep me on his side with fancy restaurants."

"He hasn't said anything to me," Madison informed him, scepticism held high in her voice.

"He asked me to mention it to you," Jonathan replied. "Miss Dawes would come, but, she is busy."

"Fine," Madison grumbled to him. "What time is the reservation for?"

"Seven," Jonathan said and stood up, picking his briefcase up as he did so. "I shall see you there, Miss Walters."

...

A/N: Thank you to reverie-scriptor, Mika927, Mockingbird's Purity and Eva Sirico for reviewing! It does become difficult to keep Crane in character sometimes, but, hopefully I'm succeeding. Please, do let me know what you think so far! Reviews are brilliant!


	4. Chapter 4

Madison went about her work in silence for the remainder of the day. Rachel was out in court for the afternoon and then she left to go home early, saying that she could finish her work off their. She'd had enough for the day. She just wanted to have one hour to herself and in the DA's office it was too hard.

Half past six came and Madison deduced that she should be leaving City Hall to go to the Ivory. Jonathan Crane was becoming the bane of her existence and she didn't even know why he agreed to this meal with her. He was the head of Arkham Asylum. He could have said no if he didn't want to go. But, it was simply business, Madison was sure about that. There would be no pleasure about this meal.

Madison was five minutes early as she sat in her car, flicking through her phone and texting her brother to tell him that she wouldn't be home till later. She would have text her parents, but, technology wasn't really their area of expertise. She phoned her mother quickly and she was convinced that she was going on a date. Madison gritted her teeth together and hung up when she noted Jonathan Crane move from his car, locking it quickly before he pressed his hands into his pockets.

"Doctor Crane," Madison greeted, climbing from her car as he walked past the bonnet of it. He stopped in his tracks, turning his head around to see her. A small smile graced his lips as he did so and he nodded gently towards her.

"Miss Walters," he replied. "How long have you been waiting?"

"Five minutes," Madison shrugged, pulling her bag further onto her shoulder before she locked her car and checked it. Jonathan watched whilst she made her way over to him and he took in the bags which were forming under her eyes. It was clear that she had taken to working hard at the DA's office.

"We'll go and get down to business then, shall we?" Jonathan said and Madison remained silent, allowing him to lead the way and inform the concierge that he had a reservation for two. The waiter took over and led them to their table amongst many other people. Jonathan looked around, noting one corrupt judge and three corrupt police officers. That was the funny thing about being a psychiatrist. You always knew who to trust and who not to trust.

"A drink, sir?" the waiter asked Jonathan who nodded in agreement.

"We'll have a bottle of water for the table," he simply informed him without looking at him. Madison saw how he looked at the menu, ignoring the waiter and she glared at him. How could he be so arrogant? She smiled up at the waiter and thanked him before her eyes fell back onto Jonathan who was watching her.

"What?" Madison asked from him and he shook his head.

"I'm just noticing how you're people pleasing again," he informed her and she rolled her eyes.

"Well, someone has to be pleasant to these people. You wouldn't want them to spit in your soup, would you?" she hissed and he chuckled darkly, placing the menu back down in front of him whilst she observed hers.

"I don't like soup," was his simple reply and Madison bit down on her tongue. There was no use in snapping at him. She looked around the room, taking in the people sat there and the decor of the place. It was ultra modern. There was no doubt about that. The leather chairs and cream walls said as much, along with the abstract art on the walls. The waiters and waitresses were hustling and bustling around everyone, making sure that they had enough to drink and that the food tasted okay.

"Of course you don't," Madison replied. "Look, we're here to talk about the case."

"So we are," he replied and leant back in his seat as the water was poured into two glasses for them. "I know all that I need to about the case, though. It is quite simple. He's not suffering from anything."

"What?" Madison checked and Jonathan shrugged as he picked up his water and sipped on it.

"It is quite simple. His parents split up when he was young which did cause him trauma. I've looked through the notes briefly and there is nothing. He is simply trying to use my expertise as a defence. No jury would buy it so there you have it. Case cracked. He's yours to prosecute with ease now."

Madison remained mute, unable to believe what she had just heard as she watched the doctor sip on his water and she folded her legs underneath the table before shaking her head, resting her chin on the back of her hand whilst her elbow rested on the table.

"You could have told me this earlier." She said and he remained looking at her.

"Who am I to pass up a free meal from the DA's office?" he enquired, a grin held firmly on his features whilst Madison shook her head, a chuckle of disbelief moving through her lips as she did so.

"I should be going," she shrugged. "I have a load of work to be getting on with."

"Or you don't want people to think of this being a date between us," Crane suggested and Madison's eyes went wide whilst Jonathan looked around the room and leant forward, his face inches from hers as he did so. "You're leant forwards along with me. We're not discussing work and if anyone looked then what do you think they would think?"

"Yes, well," Madison coughed and sat back, scowling back at him as the grin formed over his face. "This isn't a date, is it?"

"Certainly not," Crane commented.

"So, I shall be going. Thanks for the...well...you're not paying..."

"You're definitely going?" he checked with her and she nodded.

"Like I said, I'm busy and we both don't enjoy spending time with each other, do we?" Madison checked and she stood up, picking her bag up with her whilst Jonathan remained seated, leant back and enjoying watching her as she squirmed under his intrusive gaze.

"You don't always people please then," he informed her.

"Would it please you if I stayed?" she asked with slight confusion.

"I have no opinion," he promised her. "I know you don't aim to be polite to me."

"You've never extended pleasantness to me," she responded and he shrugged as she checked her watch which read twenty past seven and she shook her head, her curls moving back and forth over her shoulder as she did so. "Look, it is clear that we're not going to get on. I mean...we're just complete opposites, aren't we?"

"If you say so," Crane agreed and Madison sternly nodded at him.

"I'll probably see you around, Doctor Crane," she spoke and took off by turning on her heeled heel. Jonathan leant back in his seat, sipping on his water as he wondered about Madison Walters once again.

...

Madison was aware of how scary Gotham could be at night. But, that didn't stop her from climbing out of her car and moving into the small mini mart store which she occasionally popped into. She looked around, searching for the chocolate in order to keep her going for the remainder of the evening considering she would have missed dinner at her home and she didn't intend on staying with Crane. Chocolate always helped her when she was annoyed and confused. People eyed her with suspicion like everyone did in Gotham, but, she kept going. She paid for her purchase and stuffed it into her bag whilst she walked back onto the street.

"Hey!" Madison called out loud as she noted two boys near her car. They looked at her and remained unfazed by her appearance, standing tall as she approached them.

"Keys!" one demanded from Madison and the young woman froze as she looked around the deserted street. There was no one there. The shop was a good twenty metres behind her. She had no chance of making it back. "I said keys, lady!"

"Okay," Madison said calmly back to them as they fidgeted around on the spot which they were stood on and she moved her hand into her bag, looking around for her keys as she did so. "Okay...they're in here somewhere..."

"Are you lying to us?" the other snapped, flicking out a knife from his pocket whilst Madison shook her head, moving around her purse and cursing herself for having so much crap inside of it.

"No," she replied, trying to stop her voice from cracking as she did so.

"Grab her bag," one boy spoke to the other and he snatched it from Madison, tipping its contents onto the floor as she saw the other one continue to point the knife at her.

"Got them," he called up.

"Take her purse and mobile, too," the one with the knife spoke. Madison remained a few paces back, attempting to hold back the tears which fell into her eyes as they continued to look at the knife. "And the chocolate. We could do with something tasty."

"Stay there until we're gone," they warned her and she nodded in agreement. The pair of them jumped into her car and sped off in a matter of seconds. Madison watched on helplessly, wishing she had done something. But, then she reminded herself not to. Danny always told her that there was no point in fighting people who would win. She gulped loudly to herself, falling onto the ground on her knees and beginning to pick up the contents of her bag, sniffing loudly as she did so and sobbing on the ground. Her heart was still beating loudly and adrenaline was pumping through her veins.

"Miss Walters?" a sudden voice spoke out and Madison shrieked loudly, falling onto her behind as she turned around to see who had spoken. "It's me. What happened to you?"

"What are you doing here?" Madison snapped back at him as he bent down beside her and began to place things back into her bag for her, his eyes focused on that task.

"I left soon after you did. I live around the corner but I needed some milk for my cereal. What happened?" he asked her again as she wiped her nose with the back of her hand and he looked onto her through the lenses of his glasses and she sobbed gently, willing herself to stop as he stood up, offering her his hand. She took it, allowing him to haul her upwards before shrugging out of his jacket when he noted she didn't have a coat.

"I...I went for something to eat from the shop...and I came out...two boys were trying to rob my car and I yelled at them. They had a knife and they took my purse and my mobile...so now I can't call my parents." She sobbed and Jonathan pursed his lips together, slowly placing the jacket over her shoulders as he did so.

"It's for the shock," he told her. "You'll need to warm up."

"I'm sorry. I must look a mess," she informed him and he shrugged.

"You've just been robbed. You don't need to apologise, you know that, don't you?" he checked with her and she shrugged before he sighed to himself. "I'll give you a lift home."

"Are you sure?"

"Would you prefer to stay here?" he wondered, bending down to pick her bag up before handing it to her and she dangled it on the crook of her arm before shaking her head.

"Exactly," Crane mumbled, his hand pushing his black hair behind his ears as he did so. "Come along."

Madison followed him obediently, keeping his jacket tightly around her body as he opened the door to his car for her and she climbed in. He slammed it shut and sighed to himself. This wasn't like him at all. He didn't go around playing the knight in shining armour to damsels in distress. Then again, she wasn't normally a damsel and he most certainly was no knight. He could play this incident to his advantage. He'd find a way. He always did.

...

A/N: Thank you to anyone who is reading this and is following! Thanks to Shadow-Schemer1991 and Ariddle-Ascare for reviewing.

Let me know what you all think, please?!


	5. Chapter 5

"Take a deep breath. It will help to control your breathing," Jonathan's low voice spoke out as he sat in the driver's seat, his eyes completely focused on the road but his mind was on the girl next to him. She remained curled up in a ball on his seat, her legs pushed up to her chest and her heels resting in his footwell as she hugged his jacket tightly around her body, doing as he had said. She gulped once and then let out a deep sigh before he pulled up to a red light.

"Did they hurt you?" he asked and she shook her head, her eyes watering as she did so.

"No," she said. "They just threatened to."

"I see," Jonathan mumbled. "And would you know them again if you saw them?"

"What are you? A cop?" she snapped at him as he glared at her through his glasses and his neck twitched to the side and he went back to looking at the road.

"I'm trying to help," he said. "And before you come out with a snide comment, yes, it is possible."

"I wasn't going to say anything, _actually,_" she replied to him, looking out of her side of the window as she did so. "I'm all out of the snide comments."

"Where do you live?" he simply asked her, deducing that there was no point in questioning her any further as she settled back into her seat, inhaling the scent of his jacket as she did so. He smelt so clinical. Everything about him was orderly and proper.

"Westside Street," she mumbled. "Do you know where it is?"

"I have an idea," he simply shrugged, not saying anything further whilst Madison continued to shiver in his car. "You don't need to worry," he assured her, noting her shaking hands as he did so. "They're not going to get to you."

"I just...God...I'm supposed to be some fearless DA! Not a snivelling wreck!" she called out, burying her head into her hands as she did so and Jonathan sighed, taking a sudden turn left and following the road which he knew.

"You're not a DA yet," was his only response to her as he parked his car in the parking lot and Madison looked around in slight shock as he climbed out of the vehicle. Her heart began to race once again at this spontaneous parking whilst he opened the door to her side of the car and looked down at her.

"Where are we?" she enquired.

"Some bar," he replied. "You need a drink. It will help to calm your nerves."

"You're a doctor," Madison informed him, stepping out the car after she placed her heels back onto her feet. She looked at him with wide green eyes as he removed his glasses, wiping the lens on the edge of his sleeve as he did so and he shrugged. "Shouldn't you be against alcohol?"

"I'm off duty," he mumbled, shutting the door himself and locking the car up. "Come on."

Madison followed him obediently into the small little bar which he knew. He held the door open for her, showing her to a booth near the window and allowing her to settle onto the black leather whilst he flattened his tie against his chest and arched a brow down to her.

"What do you want to drink?" he asked and she began to rack her brain. What did she drink? She rarely drank when she went out so this was a novelty.

"Single vodka and orange, please," she said and he nodded, heading to the bar and fishing around in his pocket for his wallet as he did so.

"Doctor Crane," the man behind the bar smirked as he noted the young man. His brother had been in Arkham and Jonathan had been treating him. He was soon starting to realise that people would do anything for loved ones, including offering to bribe the heads of Asylums. Jonathan had flat out refused, not willing to have his reputation tarnished for some sleazy criminal. No, he had bigger things on his mind. "Have you thought anymore about my brother?"

"Yes and the answer is still a no," Jonathan informed him, a frown on his plump lips as he spoke. "I'll have a bottle of water and a triple vodka and orange." Jonathan said. Two more shots wouldn't hurt her. Besides, he had plans of what to do.

"Coming up," the bartender said and set about his work for the Doctor. Jonathan turned around and noted Madison sat in the booth, her eyes looking onto the darkened sky in Gotham as she did so and he watched how she held his jacket by the lapels, pulling it tightly to her body and he wondered what she was thinking. He wondered what she feared.

"Here," the bartender spoke. "They'll be a day when someone will get to you, Doctor Crane. You can mark my words."

"Consider them marked," Jonathan mumbled, handing him a five dollar note and taking their drinks back to the booth.

"Thanks," Madison managed to be civil as she took the drink from him and sipped on it, wincing as she did so. "It's a bit strong."

"The vodka is a high percentage," he shrugged it off. "Drink it. It will help."

"You don't need to be so bossy," she retorted as she took another sip. "I'm not one of your patient's."

"No, you're not," he noted with her.

"You didn't have to bring me here," Madison spoke, trying to find out the true reason as to why she was in some hidden bar in the centre of Gotham. There were only a few others in the drinking space with them. A group of women were roaring with laughter as one of them looked over to Jonathan's direction, grinning as she did so. Another set of elder men were on the bar stools, mulling the world over with bottles of beer in their hands.

"In fact, you didn't need to be this kind to me."

"What would you have me do?" Jonathan enquired. "Leave you wandering the streets of Gotham to see who else fancied their way with you? I may not be high up in your estimations, but grant me with some decorum." He demanded from her and she bit down on her bottom lip, her eyes looking into her orange juice as she did so and Jonathan coughed once.

"Sorry," Madison mumbled to him and he folded his arms and shrugged.

"We may not be best friends, Miss Walters, but, I am not a psychopath. Our silly feud can wait until morning if you really feel that we must continue it." He replied and Madison shook her head at him.

"There's no point," she said, downing some more of the alcohol afterwards. "Our fighting hasn't achieved anything thus far, has it?" she checked with him and he nodded in agreement with her.

"I suppose not," he said. "Let me get you another drink. You've nearly downed that."

"I'm fine," she promised him. "I should be getting back home."

"One more can't hurt, can it?" Jonathan flashed a smirk her way and she clenched her teeth down onto her tongue and shook her head, agreeing with him on that one. He stood back up and moved over to the bar, ordering another triple vodka and orange before handing it back to her. By her third one she was opening up to him like only a drunk would.

"And...I mean...I really do want to be a DA...I just don't know how to be a good one...I watch Rachel and she is so, so good," she slurred, the straw to her drink chewed in her mouth as Jonathan sat back, his face impassive whilst he watched her. "And then I see you! You...with your smart suits...your new car...and you're only twenty five..."

"How did you know my age?" he enquired and she flushed a bright red, coughing before chewing some more of the straw.

"I looked you up on the internet," she admitted, "only because I wondered who you really were...there's not a lot about you...just some news article about how you're young to be head of an Asylum and I wonder if I can be as successful as other people."

"I don't doubt that you can be," he said to her, his voice low and she shrugged at hearing that. "You've probably had enough now, Madison."

"You unnerve me!" she blurted it out and his ice blue eyes found hers and he watched her run a hand through her brown hair before she took another swig of her drink. "Whenever I'm with you...you unsettle me...and I don't know why..."

"Well," Jonathan coughed, not expecting to hear that come from her lips, "many people fear those who they don't truly know."

"I'm not scared of you." She promised him.

You should be.

"I hope not," he lied.

"We argue all the time...and I don't know why. I know that I don't want to, but, I know that you need to stop being so arrogant if that will happen. You're too sure of yourself. It isn't an attractive trait."

"Who said I was trying to be attractive?" he asked her, his mouth curving awkwardly around the last word and she looked over to the girls at the side.

"She thinks you are," she informed him. "She's been looking this way for the past hour."

"Are you jealous?" he wondered and she snorted, shaking her head as she did so.

"There you go again with the cockiness," she spoke. "Why would I be jealous?"

"I don't know," Jonathan replied, lacing his fingers together and resting them onto his lap. "You've already admitted that I unsettle you. That is one sign of attraction. The fact that you've been paying attention to that young woman more than me also suggests that you're annoyed with her for looking at me. I would say that you're jealous."

"I best get home," Madison mumbled after a second of silence and she stood from the booth, losing her footing in her heels as she did so. She squealed loudly as Jonathan stood up, wrapping his arm around her waist and helping her into the upright position.

"I can manage," she spat out and he shook his head, pushing his glasses further onto his nose as he did so.

"I don't think you can," he challenged her, helping her walk forwards as he supported her weight against his side. His fingers curled around her side, digging into her flesh covered by the red dress as they moved out into the parking lot and the fresh air hit Madison hard.

"Ugh," she complained, doubling over as she felt her stomach lurch and Jonathan rolled his eyes.

"Be sick here," he demanded, guiding her to a drain cover where her dinner emptied beneath her. Once she had done, she stood tall again and coughed, the taste of sick remaining in her mouth as she looked like she was about to pass out.

"Come on," Jonathan mumbled, opening his car door again and helping her into it as her head lolled against the headrest and she fell to sleep within five minutes of driving. As soon as she had gone, Jonathan changed the course of direction. His apartment was closer and he had an unknowing volunteer for his toxin.

...

A/N: Thank you to Eva Sirico and ElektraMackenzie for reviewing!

Let me know what you all think!


	6. Chapter 6

Jonathan's toxin was almost at near perfection. He had been testing it on some crazies at the Asylum, but, they were becoming too dull for him to mess with. Their minds were already lost and he didn't know whether the toxin was working on them or not. He would have had to wait for a new member to join the Asylum but there was no knowing when that would have happened. So, Miss Walters seemed like the perfect candidate. Her car had been robbed. There would be no body when the cops decided go looking for it. Of course, she had been spotted in the bar, but, there was no CCTV. And who was to say that her car went missing before that? No, Jonathan had it all planned out.

"Doctor Crane," Madison mumbled as he helped her from the car, his arm snaking around her waist as he did so and her eyes fluttered shut, her own arm moving around him as his breathing hitched at the contact. "Where are we?"

"We're going to get you inside," Jonathan simply spoke, choosing not to answer her question as he allowed his pace to slow due to her walking. He'd picked up her shoes from the footwell of his car and was now walking with them in his free hand as they finally reached his apartment. Once inside he threw them onto the floor, settling Madison down onto his sofa afterwards.

He looked down onto her, seeing the way her dress had risen up onto her thigh, showing off a small bruise which was forming there. Her breathing had become shallower and her mouth was parted as she welcomed the comfort of his leather sofa.

"You stay there," Jonathan instructed her in a mumble, removing his jacket from her shoulders as his hand lingered on her neck and he smirked to himself before placing the material on the back of a chair. He moved into the small bedroom he had and pulled out the little glass bottle. He needed some way of being able to spray the toxin. Injecting it was too hard for him to do on everyone. People would become suspicious when they saw a needle.

He rolled his sleeves up to his elbows, perching himself on the edge of the sofa as he looked at the sleeping Miss Walters. Well, more like passed out. He knew it was wrong. He knew deep down that he was doing something bad, but, he didn't care. His moral sense of right and wrong had abandoned him as soon as he first saw the effects of his toxin.

_Do it. She isn't going to mind. The girl was stupid enough for getting herself into this position in the first place. No one is going to know what happened to her. They will think it is a robbery which has gone wrong if the toxin has such severe effects._

The voice in his head spoke out to him, trying to talk sense into Jonathan as he remained looking at the young woman sleeping on his sofa, his hands shaking around the needle which he was holding as he leant forwards, his face an inch apart from hers before his hand pushed her hair behind her ear and dangled down the brown locks.

"I wonder what you fear," he mumbled into her ear and he could have sworn he felt her shiver under his touch. He sat back up, looking to her arm which had goose bumps rising on it and he narrowed his eyes. She was passed out. However, his touch and voice had some reaction to her.

"Oh, Miss Walters, how do we find ourselves in this predicament?" he enquired from her, his hand picking her arm up and running along the crease of the bend. But, he didn't get a chance to act.

The sudden noise of his cell going off startled him, almost causing him to drop the toxin from his grasp as he shook his head quickly and stood up, pulling his phone from his pocket and looking at the caller ID. Unknown number.

"Hello?" he enquired lowly, pressing the mobile to his ear.

"Doctor Crane?"

"Speaking," he confirmed.

"This is Daniel Walters. I'm a Police Officer for GPD," he informed Jonathan who looked onto Madison. "I heard that you went out with my sister earlier this evening."

So she had informed someone of her whereabouts. How inconvenient.

"Yes, I did," Crane confirmed with Daniel. "You have to be speaking about Madison."

"Yeah, I am," he agreed. "Listen, we found her car half an hour ago. It looked to be stolen but she wasn't with it. Have you seen her?"

"Yes," Jonathan nodded. "She's with me. I found her after the robbery and she was pretty shaken up. I decided it would be best if I brought her back to my apartment. I gave her something to calm her down and she's currently sleeping. She's fine. No injuries, just shock."

"Oh, thank God," Daniel sighed down the phone, relief evident in his voice as Jonathan moved over to the window by his desk, looking onto the quiet street of Gotham as he did so. "Listen, I'll be around in ten minutes to pick her up."

"There's no need, Officer," Jonathan hastily replied. How was he going to get himself out of this one? Anyone who came around and saw her could see that she was a drunk. He didn't need a brother in the picture. If anything, he needed him to leave. He would instantly suspect that Jonathan got her drunk when she was vulnerable to have his own way with her. He knew how controlling brother's minds worked.

"I know where you live. I looked you up on the database."

"As I said," Jonathan drawled, "there really is no need. Your sister is fast asleep as we speak."

"No offence, Doctor Crane, but, she doesn't particularly like you," Daniel said whilst Jonathan looked back at the passed out Madison. "I'm not comfortable leaving her at your place when she's told me that. I'll be on my way."

The cop hung up before Jonathan had the chance to protest again and he rolled his eyes, moving into the kitchen and quickly pouring cold water into a glass.

"Madison," he snapped at the young woman. "Madison, wake up." He demanded from her and she stirred on his sofa, too tired and drunk to comprehend what was happening. "Your brother is on his way to collect you."

"No," she mumbled against his sofa and Jonathan gritted his teeth together, grabbing onto her shoulder and plonking her upright with force, stuffing the water into her hand as he grabbed her shoes.

"Drink that," he demanded. "I'd give you some aspirin but I doubt it would help."

Madison placed the water to her lips, struggling to drink it as she seemed to dribble the majority of it. Jonathan resisted the urge to snap at her as he held the glass against her lips, gently tipping the water into her mouth before she decided to stop drinking and grabbed onto her head, moaning as she did so.

Jonathan unlocked his door when he heard the knocking from the police officer and he allowed him to enter his apartment. Sure enough, it took him less than five seconds to see the state which his sister was in.

"What the hell has happened to her?" Danny snapped, moving over to his sister and bending down, his hands resting on her knees as he looked at her face and Jonathan clasped his hands behind his back, moving around the room as he did so.

"I gave her a drink to help with the shock," Jonathan informed Danny. "She decided that one wasn't enough. I tried to get her to stop, but, I couldn't. I've given her some water and she's been passing out on me all night."

"Jesus Christ," Danny complained, standing up and picking his sister up into his arms, her limp body in his hold whilst Jonathan watched on with intrigue. It was clear that the siblings were close to each other. He could see that much. "I suppose I should thank you."

"Don't mention it," Jonathan shrugged; his voice nonchalant as he did so. No, he was just glad to be out of trouble.

...

"Doctor Crane!" Madison's voice rang out when she saw the Doctor the next afternoon. He was stood outside of City Hall, his briefcase was by his side as he stood and looked for his car keys. Madison had seen him move from the courtroom and she had taken off after him, her head spinning as she did so. It was her own fault. Danny had yelled at her, informing her that it was stupid of her to even drink when she'd been robbed. She should have called the police as soon as possible. Madison had to be honest; she could barely remember what had happened.

"Miss Walters," Jonathan nodded back to her.

"Hi."

"Hello," Jonathan smirked. "Did you want something?"

"I just...well...I wanted to say thanks...for last night and well, looking after me, I suppose." Madison grumbled and Jonathan smirked before nodding at her.

"Well, just so long as it doesn't happen again," he replied and she blushed, realising that she was being scolded. "How's your head?"

"Pounding," she admitted with a small grin. "Still, the job goes on."

"Indeed it does," he replied. "If you'll excuse me, I have to get back to Arkham. Patients to see."

"Yeah...fine...thanks again..." Madison garbled, leaving Jonathan alone on the steps to City Hall before she took off back inside.

If only she knew what he had planned. She wouldn't be thanking him then.

...

A/N: Thank you very much to reverie-scriptor, daughterofapollo18, Ariddle-Ascare, Mika927 for reviewing last chapter! Let me all know what you think!


	7. Chapter 7

"You have a hangover, don't you?" Rachel checked with Madison as the two women sat in the office together. Madison had gone out to pick up two salads and Rachel was taking a break from speaking out in court. She remained silent for a moment, picking at the lettuce with her fork whilst Rachel arched a brow sceptically, daring her to challenge her deduction.

"I had a rough night," Madison explained to her and Rachel leant forward in her seat, dropping her fork and picking up her water whilst she watched Madison push a hand through her hair. "My car was robbed last night."

"You didn't say."

"I didn't really think it was a big deal," Madison shrugged nonchalantly. She didn't intend on burdening Rachel with her issues. "Doctor Crane found me afterwards and he took me out for a drink. I drank more than I should have."

"What?" Rachel hollered out in shock, her innocent eyes going wide whilst Madison shrugged gently. "Doctor Crane took you for a drink?"

"He said that it would help with my nerves. I drank too much. I should have known when to stop. I was just scared and kind of shaken up. It was silly of me," Madison informed Rachel who leant back, holding her fork in her hand as she prodded at the tomato in the salad and looked to the door of her office, lost in thought at what she had heard.

"Carl told me that Doctor Crane didn't look like someone who would...well...he said he seemed like a loner," Rachel said in a slight drawl and Madison snorted, waving her stabbed cucumber around on her fork as she did so.

"He is a bit," Madison admitted. "He wasn't that bad. He was very pleasant last night with me."

"Even though you openly admit that you dislike him?" Rachel checked, her voice still holding a tone of disbelief as Madison shrugged openly, popping the cucumber into her mouth as she did so. Rachel rolled her eyes and looked down at the paperwork which needed filling out as her intern remained lost in her own thoughts. Rachel thought it was funny how she could go from hating him one moment to thinking he was pleasant the next. But, she'd been a young girl once.

Madison simply wondered if she and Jonathan had gotten off on the wrong foot. It happened to everyone, she knew that much. She'd try and set it right.

"I think that he rescued you from some bad predicament which you found yourself in and now you see him as some knight in shining armour," Rachel declared, standing up and placing the file into the cabinet whilst Madison ate her final grated carrot piece and tossed her empty dish into the bin and shook her head.

"I don't believe in that," she informed Rachel. "Besides, he doesn't exactly look like some knight in shining armour."

"I haven't seen him," Rachel reminded her intern. "I will have to now, though, I suppose. I need to see what has gotten you all rattled recently."

"I'm not rattled," Madison denied. "I'm going to attempt to be pleasant to him from now on. I am sure that I can manage that."

...

Madison Walters was everything which Jonathan would have despised during his time at college. She would have been the bane of his existence. But, he wasn't in college anymore. He wasn't in college and he was a Doctor and a former Professor. He had accomplished a lot in his life. Madison Walters meant nothing to him. In the grand scheme of things she knew nothing and she was some wannabe DA who he had helped. But, he couldn't resist the smirk on his face when he thought about the previous night.

The more he thought about it then the more he thought that something was wrong with him. She had been scared. She'd been scared and alone on that street. Fear had radiated through her body and out into her panting breath, but, he felt nothing. If anything, he hadn't wanted to laugh. He had wanted to make sure she was okay. His initial reaction was to make her feel safe.

Jonathan could never want that for anyone.

No, no matter how he looked at it, the young woman was getting under his skin. Whether it was her irritating tendencies, or her random spouts of pleasantness, everything about her was irking him to his core.

He had to deal with her before she became an even worse problem to him and to the voice in his head. That was how he found himself walking back through the corridor of City Hall later on in the day, searching out Mr Finch and enquiring who his next diagnosis would be. And then he had said Rachel Dawes was on the case.

"I found her intern to be rather refreshing," Jonathan stated to Finch who arched a brow and allowed his eyes to go wide at hearing that.

"Madison?" he checked with Jonathan. Rachel had told him about Madison before. She'd said that she didn't think she had the potential to be anything in the DA's office due to her pleasant attitude and her lack of passion. "I'm sure Rachel has briefed her on the case."

"Excellent," Jonathan replied with a small grin, looking around the man's office as he did so. "I wouldn't want to take up Miss Dawes time, would I? She clearly has bigger things on her mind other than briefing a doctor."

"Well...I mean...maybe," Finch stumbled and shrugged. "I'll have Madison drop by Arkham tomorrow morning then."

"I have a vacancy at nine thirty," Jonathan replied, placing his glasses back onto his nose as he did so and he nodded at Finch. "Thank you very much, Mr Finch."

...

"Doctor Crane has asked if you could go down and brief him at Arkham tomorrow morning for nine thirty," Finch informed Madison as she followed Rachel out of court number seven and Madison stood still for a second, her eyes widening at hearing that.

"He requested me personally?" she wondered and Finch shrugged, slightly confused as to what was happening.

"In not so many words," he confirmed. "He said that he found you to be rather refreshing."

"You did tell him that it was my case, didn't you?" Rachel checked and Finch nodded, wondering why the two women were asking him so many questions as Madison bit on the inside of her cheek, her mind still working overtime at this sudden revelation.

"Yes. He said that he wouldn't want to bother you with a mediocre task," Finch replied and Rachel shook her head, a small grin on her face as she did so.

"Or he has an ulterior motive," she mumbled which caused Madison to glare in her direction.

Jonathan Crane did have an ulterior motive. It just wasn't one which happened to be on the same wavelength as Rachel Dawes.

...

A/N: Thank you to anyone who is reading and following this! And thank you to daughterofapollo18 for reviewing. If you are reading then please do leave me a review just to let me know what you think so far! Always worry that people are losing interest!


	8. Chapter 8

"Mom and Dad are out," Danny called out as soon as Madison entered the living room of their small, terraced home and her brother looked over to her, a can of beer in his hand and the remote in his other one. "And you're grounded."

"I'm twenty two," Madison said blandly, sitting down beside him on the sofa and folding her arms as she did so, her chin jutting out in stubbornness whilst he shrugged nonchalantly at her, too intrigued in the football match on TV. "And you're my brother. You can't ground me."

"When I find out that you've been reckless with alcohol with a man you barely know, then I can," he promised her. "What even possessed you to drink with him? Do you not know what could have happened?"

"Doctor Crane would never have done anything like that, Danny," Madison snapped at her brother, lunging across his body to snatch the remote from his hand as she then flicked stations onto 'America's Next Top Model' and he glared at her. "I'm not in college and he is certainly not interested in taking advantage of a drunken girl. He's far too mature for that."

"He's a guy," Danny deadpanned with her. "I know many guys who would love to have been in his situation, Mads."

"And there are some good ones in the world," Madison responded and he rolled his eyes. "You're one of them, aren't you?"

"I'm a cop. We have to be good." He quickly reasoned and Madison snorted loudly as he snatched the remote back from her grasp and placed it onto his football match, swigging his beer.

"Everyone knows that half of GPD is corrupt," she spoke clearly and he shrugged back to her.

"And everyone knows that Judge Faden is the most corrupt judge you can ever meet. None of it matters as long as Falcone is running the city. Anyway, that's irrelevant. What is relevant is the fact that you're still grounded."

"Yes, mom," Madison drawled out like a child before standing up and rolling her eyes. She moved into the kitchen, hunting through the cupboards to search for something to eat as Danny appeared in the doorway, still draining off his beer as he watched her.

"I'm just looking out for you," he promised her. "You even said it yourself that you don't like him. If you don't like someone then you can't trust them."

"He's not that bad," Madison replied. "I think we maybe got off on the wrong foot."

"Maybe you're right," Danny shrugged. "If he can stand you drunk and smelling of sick and be kind enough to nurse you then he can't be that bad."

...

Madison paid for the taxi to Arkham Asylum that next morning, deciding to go straight there instead of going to work. Rachel said it made sense and so Madison did just that. She paid the driver, wishing she had her beloved car back with her, before she made her way into the reception of the Asylum. The receptionist looked at her, allowing a visible roll of the eyes to come from her as Madison declared she was there to see Doctor Crane. This time she was scheduled into his appointment calendar. She showed herself to his office, knocking on the door softly three times before he called for her to enter.

"Miss Walters," he spoke formally as she closed the door and made her way over to the seat opposite his desk, dropping her satchel beside her and unbuttoning her coat as he remained looking down onto his paperwork.

"I understand you asked for me to brief you about the Jones' case?" Madison checked and Jonathan nodded, dotting the final I and then looking into her green eyes with his blue ones as she pulled the file from her satchel and he pushed his papers to the side, allowing room for her large brown folder.

"I did," he confirmed. "As I explained to Mr Finch, it seemed unreasonable to take up Miss Dawes time when I know that you are more than capable and we have already had this discussion before."

"I see," Madison spoke, her voice sounding slightly downtrodden. Where had that come from? She didn't care that he didn't particularly want to see her. Her voice did, however, suggest otherwise.

"Ah," Jonathan said lightly, removing his glasses from his eyes and dropping them into his pocket before he pushed his hand through his matted hair and Madison looked at him with wide orbs.

"What is it?" she wondered and Jonathan chuckled, leaning forwards and lacing his fingers together, resting them onto his desk as he did so.

"The problem with being a psychiatrist is that I notice things," he informed her in a soft voice. "Your tone of disappointment was easy enough to pick up on."

"Oh," Madison said simply. "Well, it wasn't that. Should we get started?"

"What is with the pleasant attitude, Miss Walters?" he wondered from her and she focused on the file on the table instead of at his blue eyes. His voice was so low and soft, it seemed rude to ignore the question which he had asked of her.

"Look, there is no use in us arguing. You may not like me-"

"-Who said that?" Jonathan wondered, sitting back again as she drew her head back up to look at him. "It was you who simply began arguing with me."

"Whatever," Madison drawled. "I'm not fighting with you, Doctor Crane. I found you to be a rather pleasant being when-"

"-You were drunk and incoherent?" Jonathan finished off for her and Madison glared at him.

"Can you stop interrupting?" she hissed. "But yes. You're just slightly arrogant, I suppose."

"I just believe in myself," he replied simply.

"Which is defined as arrogant," she said and shrugged. "We really should be starting, Doctor Crane. I'm need at the DA's office later this morning."

"I understand," Jonathan nodded at her.

"Great," Madison smiled quickly. She spent the next ten minutes sat in her seat, going over the notes whilst the Doctor listened intently, often dropping in a snide comment here and there before he took the notes and glanced through them quickly himself. His mind was far too capable to be dealing with things like this. The case was obvious. The defendant was a paranoid schizophrenic. He would be perfect for Arkham.

"So, that's us done, isn't it?" Madison checked with Jonathan, stuffing the folder into her bag as she hung her coat over her arms and stood up from the wooden chair, flattening out the black skirt she wore as Jonathan placed his hands behind his back and looked at her.

_Show her._

The voice spoke out whilst he watched Madison wait for him to answer her question.

_You know you want to, Jonathan. The medicine is down there and waiting for her. She wouldn't be on your mind. She'd be gone and then it could go back to the way things were. It would be for the best. One simple sentence, Jonathan. Just tell her that you need to show her something._

"Perhaps we could attempt to reconcile our differences?" Jonathan suddenly suggested to her and her jaw hung open as he shrugged. "I still have a free meal at the Ivory. Clearly, we will be working closely together whilst I am testifying so it may be good if we talk things through?"

"As in a date?" Madison spat out and Jonathan arched a brow, his nose wrinkling and causing his glasses to move as he did so.

"I wouldn't say it was a date," he spoke clearly. "I'd say it would be two colleagues attempting to get to know each other."

"Well...I mean...fine...yes..." Madison blabbered on whilst Jonathan smiled, opening the door for her as she stood opposite him, their bodies inches apart whilst Jonathan remained staring at her blushing cheeks.

"I'll be by city hall at about half past six tonight seeing as how you don't have a car."

"Fine...okay..." Madison said, trying not to sound...well...bemused over the turn of events.

"Until then, Miss Walters," Jonathan said and she scurried from his office as he shut the door, leaning against the wall afterwards and dropping his head into his hands.

_Look what you've done now._

"Shut up," Jonathan commanded the voice. He knew what he had done. But, he didn't even care.

...

A/N: Thank you to Fangirl-Karla, Invisible-Ayla and reverie-scriptor for reviewing! And thanks to all those following.

Do leave a review! Is Crane still in character? It's so hard when you're trying to get him to like someone!


	9. Chapter 9

"I know that you get an hour for lunch, but, you've been gone for an hour and one minute," Rachel informed Madison when she saw her dive back into the office, a bag held in her hand as she dropped her satchel onto the floor and took a seat back at her desk whilst Rachel looked at her unbutton her coat. She swung around in her chair, revealing the large stain which had formed on her dress and Rachel's mouth hung open.

"What happened?" she enquired.

"A woman decided that she didn't like her Starbuck's coffee and so threw it all over me," she complained. "I had to go out and get a new dress. This one is ruined and I wasn't going around the office all day wearing it."

"She must really have hated her coffee," Rachel joked and Madison rolled her eyes at her before she stood back up after finishing scrawling on the paperwork. She grabbed the plastic bag into her hand, holding it by her side before moving into Rachel's private small bathroom and stripping out of the garment.

"Well, it is different to the other one," Rachel declared when Madison walked back out, looking down at the blue polka dot top of the dress and then onto the light brown skirt of it.

"It was the nicest one which I could find," Madison assured her, her hands moving around the back of it and trying to reach the small zip which went up to the bottom of her neck on her back.

"Anyway, we're needed in court." Rachel quickly stood up and handed Madison a folder. "Jake Marshall is going on parole early."

"Lucky us."

...

"That's a different dress than the one which you wore this morning," Jonathan observed as soon as Madison removed her jacket from her shoulders when they reached the Ivory. He took in the appearance of her as she picked up the skirt to her dress and shrugged gently.

"Someone stuck a coffee on my other dress whilst I was on my dinner break today," Madison complained and Jonathan arched a brow, wondering if she was telling the truth or not. Was she taking this as a date? Did she think he was interested? Was he interested? "I didn't want to spend the rest of the day wearing a drink on me."

"I see," Jonathan said and looked back onto the menu. She nodded once, sipping on the water which had been placed on the table as he looked across to her through his glasses, his eyes scrutinising her as she ran a hand down her hair and settled on spaghetti Bolognese.

"So, did you have a good day?" Madison wondered, realising that she had to start some form of conversation. If not then they'd be so bored. Jonathan smirked at her question and pushed his hair behind his ear before dropping the menu onto the table and nodding once at her.

"It depends what you class as good," he declared, managing to hide the smirk which was forming on his face. "Some patient decided to try and slit their wrists."

"Oh," Madison spoke and Jonathan took in the way she looked slightly repulsed. He should assure her that the patient got his comeuppance in the form of some special toxin. He was currently in his cell crying about how he was scared of rats.

"Anyway," Jonathan replied, "how was your day?"

"Fine, yes, not bad," Madison declared, her voice slightly dull as she said it. She knew that Jonathan wasn't interested in how her day went. Their attempt at small conversation was something which wasn't going well. Maybe they were better when they argued.

"So..." Madison drawled after a moment of silence and Jonathan looked back across to her after he had finished staring at the other people in the room. He smirked once, taking a sip of his water as he did so. "What do you want to talk about?"

"I'm sure you've done this more than me," Jonathan drawled and Madison took a moment to look confused for a second.

"What? Been on a date?" she enquired as he smirked at her, his gaze intense as he did so and Madison blushed under his stare. What was it with him? She couldn't put her finger on it.

"I thought that we agreed that this wasn't a date?" Jonathan replied to her and she nodded hastily with him, feeling like an idiot for mentioning that word. She was sure Doctor Crane was too busy for dating. He certainly looked like he was. "No. I don't go out for meals often. I don't have the luxury of friends."

"You have no friends?" she wondered from him, her eyes wide and he shrugged nonchalantly.

"I'm married to my job. Surely you know that feeling?" he checked and she bit down on her tongue and looked around the room. She didn't know.

"No," she admitted to him. "You need to do something to relax, don't you? Working all the time can be stressful."

"No," Jonathan disagreed with her. "I enjoy my job. I don't have time for anything else."

Madison picked up on the tone of his voice as she studied his cold face, wondering what he was trying to tell her before she nodded once and looked down at her food with a contemplative glance.

"Is that a hint?" she wondered from him and he arched a brow, not entirely sure what she was talking about. "You know," Madison said, her voice trying to be airy, "that we're just going to be colleague because you don't have time to be anything more...like friends...or more..."

"More?" Jonathan spat the word out after taking a sip of his water and Madison shook her head at him.

"I'm just saying that it is cool," Madison promised him. "I mean...thanks for letting me know and all...but there's nothing like that between us..."

"Right," Jonathan drawled at her. "I'm glad that has been clarified for you."

"It has," Madison spoke, looking around for the waiter as she squirmed uncomfortably in her seat and Jonathan continued staring at her, his plump lips turning up at the sides as he watched her worry about what she had just said.

Maybe he could have fun with her.


	10. Chapter 10

"I didn't graduate top in my class, but, I didn't come at the bottom," Madison informed Jonathan as she relaxed into the conversation with him, a glass of water held in her hand as she placed her fork down onto her empty plate and Jonathan took the last mouthful of fish which he had. He'd been questioning her for the majority of the night, wanting to know what she did when she was younger and how she had been during college years. "I suppose I could have done better."

"Why do you think that?" Jonathan asked, sipping on his own water as he removed his glasses from his eyes, dropping them into his pocket and blinking quickly, adjusting his eyesight to the light as he watched the young brunette shrug her shoulders opposite him.

"I liked to party," she admitted shyly. "I often put it before my studies."

"I see," Jonathan mused. "If that is the case, then I'd like to know, how did you manage a position in the DA's office?"

"Have you ever found that it's not what you know but who you know?" Madison arched a brow in his direction whilst Jonathan's furrowed together, knitting in concentration as he took a second to think about her words. She'd had her way bought into the office.

"I can't say that I have," Jonathan responded, his voice dry as he took another swig of water and Madison glanced down onto the white tablecloths, worried about what to say to him as she did so.

"My dad used to work with Mr Finch." Madison declared. "I went for an interview and he realised what my last name was. He enquired about my dad and the next week I became an intern."

"How fortunate," Jonathan drawled and Madison looked back into his eyes, her own set narrowed at him as she did so.

"I didn't ask for him to hire me," she defended herself whilst Jonathan picked up his napkin, dabbing it at the side of his mouth as he did so and he looked around the vast room, picking up on Madison's curt tone. Clearly she was defensive.

"I never said you did. I just think it is sometimes maddening how someone can be where they are because of who they know when there are other candidates out there who are better suited to a job," Jonathan declared to her. Madison bit down on her tongue, doing her best not to lose her temper with him as she pushed a hand through her hair, reminding herself that he meant nothing by it. There were hundreds of others in the same position as she was. But, they weren't the ones having dinner with Doctor Crane.

"I like to think that I am growing into the job," Madison finally decided on finishing off that conversation and Jonathan's lips pulled up into his infamous smirk, his blue eyes dancing back into hers and he nodded once to confirm what she had just said.

"I think you're doing fine," he agreed simply. "So, your brother is a cop?"

"Yes," Madison quickly responded, grateful for a change in the direction of conversation. "He's twenty five now and he's been on the force for a year. He wants to work his way up the ranks."

"I thought that he looked older than you," Jonathan said.

"Yes. Do you have any siblings?" Madison decided to delve into his personal life. The shifting which occurred on his seat was enough to tell her that she had reached a sensitive topic. It wasn't one which he enjoyed to share with people he didn't know. Actually, he didn't particularly enjoy to share it with anyone who did he know. His past was pushed to the back of his mind for his work to take priority over it. It was the way things had to be.

"No," Jonathan wrangled the word from his lips. "My parents both died when I was younger. I spent my life with my grandmother."

"Oh," Madison said, unsure of what to say next at the sudden revelation as Jonathan chuckled at her response and reddening cheeks.

"You don't have to say anything," he assured her. "It was a long time ago. I've been alone for the past seven years."

"Seven?" Madison checked and he nodded to confirm. "That's an awfully long time."

"I thank you for your concern, Miss Walters," Jonathan said wryly to her. "But I've gotten along just fine. You must still live with your parents?"

Madison took a moment before she nodded; answering the sudden question he had just asked her. He clearly didn't want to discuss his past history.

"Yes. My mom and dad," she confirmed. "I'm saving up for a place of my own. Just some apartment somewhere...but...my brother and me don't get paid an awful lot yet."

"You're both still rookies," Jonathan confirmed. "You'll get there eventually."

"You got there at his age," Madison reminded him – as if he needed the reminder. He shrugged, trying to be nonchalant in her presence as he thought of all that he had accomplished during his short years.

"I chose a different career path," he explained. "I studied hard to be where I am. Many would deem it as not normal."

"But who is to judge what is normal?" Madison snorted, picking her glass back up and drinking some of the water from it whilst Jonathan sat back and folded his arms, thinking about the rhetorical question which he seemed to want to answer.

Jonathan escorted Madison back out to the car park at the end of the night where she insisted to pay for a cab home. However, Jonathan was much more persistent. He offered to drive her home, saying it made sense seeing as how she was on his way home.

"I had a nice time tonight," Madison assured him as he pulled up outside of her home and he looked across to her as she stared back at him. His hands were still gripping onto the wheel of his car as he did so, just managing to make out her features from the small streetlight which shone down over his silver sedan.

"Yes," Jonathan agreed. "It made a change for us to be pleasant with each other instead of wanting to argue."

"Maybe we could do it again?" Madison suggested to him and he arched a brow at her and she shook her head quickly. "I didn't mean like a date. I know what you think about them. Maybe just two people taking the time out from work to have dinner?"

"Time out from work?" Jonathan checked with her and she nodded, laughing lightly at his vacant expression as she pulled her bag up from his footwell and dropped it into her lap, pushing her tangled brown hair behind her shoulders as she did so.

"What's so funny?" Jonathan pondered aloud.

"Your face when I suggested having time out from work. You really don't do that, do you?" she asked; her voice slightly pitiful as she did so. Jonathan took in her tone of pity and the voice in his head began to rear its ugly head. He didn't need her pity. He didn't need her to indulge him in the ideal of friends.

"I told you before that I didn't," Jonathan spoke, his voice slightly harsh as Madison recoiled from it, wondering where the sudden venom had come from. "Maybe you could take a leaf out of my book and do the same."

"Okay," Madison whispered; her voice soft as she did so.

_You've got her scared now, Jonathan. Ask her what she fears? You can basically smell it radiating off of her._

"Yes, well, as I said, I don't have the time for the luxury of friends," Jonathan drawled, looking her up and down as he did so and she shook her head.

"Sorry," she mumbled. "I just thought-"

"-Well don't," he interrupted, taking a deep breath as he did so.

_Go on! Drive off and take her somewhere quiet. The toxin will be so much better when she fears you like this. Think of what would happen._

"You'd best go," Jonathan informed Madison, her eyes wide with worry and wonder as he pinched the bridge of his nose, looking straight out of the window in front of him as she remained froze, worrying what he was thinking before he spoke again. "Please...just go...Madison..."

"I'm sorry," she said again and he shook his head.

"Fine," he declared. "I just need you to go."

Madison nodded once, quickly opening the door and scrambling out of the car, slamming the door shut as Jonathan drove off down the darkened street, the voice ringing in his head and scolding him over the opportunity which he had just missed.

...

A/N: Thank you to anyone who is following this and taking the time to read.

Please, do let me know what you think of it so far! Reviews are really encouraging!


	11. Chapter 11

"Where have you been this evening?" Danny wondered from his sister as soon as she entered the home, she shut the door, quickly locking it before resting against the thickness of the wood, her eyes staring at the floor as if it held some great mystery. What had just happened?

"Mads," Danny said her name lowly and she looked up to him, taking in the way he arched a brow in her direction and looked on contemplatively. She forced herself to smile, nodding quickly as she did so, trying to assure him that everything was okay.

"I went out for dinner with Doctor Crane," she explained. "We had a mutual decision to do it. You know we haven't been getting along and we really should do as colleagues."

"Is that so?" Danny checked, folding his arms against the uniform which he still wore as he waited for the clock to strike eleven so that he could leave for the graveyard shift. Madison tried to nod and smile, finding it increasingly hard to lie to her brother about what she had just witnessed. Jonathan had turned in front of her. He'd been pleasant and chatty one second and then the next he was demanding for her to get out and leave him alone.

"Yes," she nodded. "Look, I'd best get to bed. I'm completely shattered and you should be going to work soon, shouldn't you?"

"Ten minutes," Danny confirmed, checking the silver watch which sat on his wrist as Madison kicked her heels off in the hallway by the other shoes and kissed her brother on the cheek.

"I'll see you tomorrow," she smiled, trying to turn away before he grabbed onto her wrist and drew her back to him, searching her green eyes for the vaguest hint of the truth as she pushed her lips together.

"Are you sure that you're okay?"

"Danny," Madison complained to him with a roll of her eyes. "I'm fine. I'll see you later."

"You know that I'm here if you need to talk," he called out after her as she took to the steps. She stood frozen for a second, her shoulders slumping downwards before she shook her head, tossing her hair behind her and then moving into her room, giving herself all the time she needed to think about what just happened.

...

Jonathan sat at his desk later that evening, his hands frantically scribbling on the papers before him, declaring the sane insane and the insane even more loony than they had previously thought possible. He supposed it was the joys of being the head psychiatrist along with having the privilege of trying to bring Gotham to its knees.

How he was enjoying making the toxin.

His mind occasionally wandered back to the earlier conversation which he and Madison had partaken in and he shuddered gently, thinking about how the voice had made an unscheduled appearance. He'd been rude to her and horrible. She had only just offered to be a friend. She thought that she was being nice.

_Friends are for the weak._

"Now, now," Jonathan mumbled, hearing the barking inside of his head whilst he finally signed his name on the last piece of paper. He threw his head back, his hands running up and down his cleanly shaven cheeks and under the frame of his glasses whilst he thought about what Madison would think of him.

He'd frightened her. He had worried her and he didn't know what he felt about it. He certainly knew how _he _felt about it. He'd rejoiced in the marvel that was fear. But, he wasn't Jonathan. He was the other part to Jonathan. No, the head psychiatrist was confused. He didn't mean to scare her. He just wanted for her to leave him alone. He wanted her to get out of the car so that the voice didn't act on its fantasies.

He'd set things right. Madison was a woman and an easily readable one at that. He didn't know why he felt the need to get back into her good books. But, he wanted to do just that.

...

"Wow," Rachel drawled out, dropping the usual case file onto her desk before looking at her intern's, her eyes widening as she took in the sight of the large bouquet which sat there. Madison peered from around the yellow roses, looking at Rachel as she took a seat in her leather chair and rested her hands onto her thighs as she crossed her legs. "Someone has certainly done something. Who are they from?"

"Did you know that yellow roses indicate friendship? Platonic friendship. That is all."

"I see," Rachel replied back to her, looking onto the flowers as she did so. "You didn't answer the question."

"Doctor Crane sent them," Madison mumbled back, looking at the card on her desk which had come with them. He had simply offered her his apologies for the previous night, indicating that he was simply feeling under the weather and had meant no offence by anything. He said that he had hoped the roses showed what he wished to convey. And so Madison had to look on Google to find out the definition of roses due to Mr Cryptic not being so obvious.

"Doctor Crane?" Rachel checked with her intern and she nodded, pulling the bobble in her hair tighter onto her ponytail as she did so, shaking her head in disbelief before burying it into her hands. "I met him this morning in court. He was giving a testimony. He seemed...interesting."

"Interesting?" Madison spoke, wondering if Rachel would expand on her definition of interesting as Madison pushed her chair to the side of the desk where she could see her mentor, the flowers not obstructing her view as she did so.

"Yes," Rachel confirmed. "He didn't seem like the kind of man who would send flowers. He seemed distant and slightly...well..."

"You can say what you want," Madison replied, eyeing her flowers up and down as she did so. "We only have a platonic friendship."

"Well, he seemed cold," Rachel finally spoke. "It was like he wanted to distance himself from everyone."

"Yeah," Madison drawled gently. "He's like that."

"And you seem put out that he sent you yellow roses," Rachel observed, standing back up and moving around her office whilst Madison shrugged, trying to be breezy about the situation. Rachel focused her attention back onto the filing which she was doing whilst Madison looked down at the notes she had been making.

"I'm fine with platonic friendship. If anything it is a step up from what we were before," she admitted to the woman who bit down on her bottom lip but nodded in agreement with what she had just said. She tried to contain the smirk which she wanted to form, knowing that Madison was in denial about the good Doctor.

"It is," she confirmed. "It's just a step below the one which you wanted to reach, isn't it?"

"No!" Madison squeaked out, her voice reaching an octave which many dogs would be able to understand.

"You're trying to deny it and you're failing terribly," Rachel informed her. "I've been in love before, Madison. I know what it is like."

"I am most certainly not in love with him," Madison promised Rachel, almost falling off of her chair as she scooted it behind her to the cabinet file. "We're not even on a first name basis."

"But you're not denying any attraction?"

"I never said anything," Madison responded in a mutter. "It really isn't important. We're just friends...I mean...look at the roses..."

"Yes," Rachel nodded, her eyes still scanning the open drawer in front of her before she grabbed the file and pulled it out, looking back to Madison as she slammed the metal shut. "And just think how much happier you'd be feeling if the roses were red right now."

Rachel took in the shocked look on Madison's face before she left her office with one smirking intern.

...

"Doctor Crane," Madison greeted Jonathan when she saw him enter her office. Her voice was one of surprise as the Doctor closed the door gently, his eyes looking back onto the flowers which sat on her desk as Madison stood up to greet him, almost tripping up over her own feet before she moved around the desk. "What are you doing here?"

"I've just been in court," Jonathan replied to her. "I asked Miss Dawes if it would be possible to see you. I just wanted to make sure you got my flowers."

"Yes...thank you...there was no need to have sent them," Madison assured him, stammering over her choice of words whilst Jonathan took the time to raise a hand to stop her.

"Well, is it not customary for men to send women flowers when they've behaved out of term?" he asked, a brow rose in her direction as he said. "I was just following tradition."

"Right," Madison nodded. He hadn't sent them because he wanted to. He had sent them because it was the right thing to do. He'd sent them because it had been logical to do so in his mind. "So what was last night about?"

"I was simply tired," Jonathan promised her quickly. "I didn't mean to be so snappy with you."

"It's fine," Madison declared to him, shrugging gently as she did so. "Anyway, thanks for the flowers. I'd best be getting back to work."

She moved back to her seat, hiding behind the bouquet as Jonathan narrowed his eyes, looking around in confusion. She had clearly just dismissed him.

"Your mood has changed ever since I told you about the flowers," he observed and heard her snort before he took a seat in the chair opposite Rachel's desk seeing as how Madison only had one at hers. "Was it not the right thing to do?"

"It was fine," Madison mumbled. "You've certainly followed stereotype."

"Excuse me?" Jonathan asked, wondering what she was harping on about before she moved out from her hiding spot and looked at him.

"You're supposed to send flowers to a girl because you want to, not just because you've heard it is what you're supposed to do," Madison declared to him and he folded his legs and his arms, looking at her challengingly.

"If every male in the world sent flowers because he wanted to then many florists would be out of business. They do it because it is expected of them," Jonathan spoke back to her and Madison shook her head at him and he rolled his eyes. "Are you really annoyed just because I sent you flowers? Did you want me to want to send you flowers?"

Madison took a moment to understand the question which he had just asked her before she shrugged once in his direction and twirled her pen in her hand.

"It might have made the gesture seem kinder," she simply spoke out and Jonathan grinned. It wasn't the reaction she had been expecting from him. She had become accustomed to his eye rolls and exasperated sighs. "They're beautiful, anyway."

"I thought so, too," Jonathan spoke, standing back up and picking his briefcase up. "I chose them, also. Miss Dawes did tell me another thing on my way up."

"What was that?" Madison asked, looking back onto her paperwork as Jonathan made his way over to the doorway.

"She informed me that the colour red may be more apt."

Madison took her glaze from the writing and back onto the grinning Doctor as he nodded in her direction, realising that she wasn't going to say anything in response to that.

"Good day, Madison."

He closed the door behind him and Madison allowed his goodbye to echo in her ears. Had he just called her by her first name when she was coherent and sober? Had he been grinning about the flowers? She shook her head quickly, glancing onto the yellow flowers as she did so.

...

A/N: So, not many reviews recently, just leave me a quick word to let me know if you're interested so far, please?


	12. Chapter 12

"Oh, Madison!" a voice squealed as soon as Madison managed to shut the door to her house after juggling folders, a satchel, a coat and a large bouquet of flowers. Marie Walters was stood at the top of the stairs, her eyes wide as she saw her daughter move into the house. "Don't tell me you have a secret admirer?"

"He's not that secret," Madison replied, managing to drop her bag and coat onto the floor as her mother bent down to hang them onto the coat rack whilst Madison walked down the hallway and into the kitchen, placing her folders down and then the flowers onto the draining board. Her mother didn't appear to want to let the conversation drop as she followed her into the kitchen, taking it upon herself to pull out a vase to put the flowers in.

"Who is he?"

"Doctor Crane," Madison mumbled, watching as her mother's mouth opened wide and she began to shriek with delight. Madison shook her head before she could form a coherent sentence together. "Before you say anything, they're just flowers to apologise for his behaviour the other night."

"What did he do?" Marie asked; her voice quite curt as she wondered if this man had hurt her daughter.

"He was just tired and snappish," Madison downplayed the event. "There was no need for flowers."

"A doctor!" Marie sighed dreamily, placing the roses into water as she did so. "If a man sends you flowers then it means something, Madison."

"No, it doesn't," Madison disagreed with her. "It means that he felt a duty to send them to me because he had been rude. It doesn't mean that he likes me enough to send them himself," Madison declared to her mother who shook her head, tutting as she did so.

"You're so cynical. You have to take after your brother and father for that. So, what is this Doctor Crane like?"

"Mom," Madison complained like a child, pulling out a can of cola from the fridge as she did so. "I have work to do."

"I'm just trying to show an interest, Madison," Marie complained lightly. "God only knows that I don't have any romance around here. Your father and I haven't even-"

"-I'm going," Madison declared and Marie rolled her eyes as her daughter rushed to grab her paperwork from the desk and she shook her head.

"You'd only complain at me if I didn't show an interest," she called after Madison as she made her way out from the kitchen.

...

"I see you've got your car back," Jonathan nodded in the direction of Madison's vehicle as she pulled her satchel from the boot and nodded once, a small smile on her face as she did so.

"No more ridiculous taxi fares for me," she declared to him and he chuckled, holding his briefcase tightly to his side as he pushed his glasses further onto the bridge of his nose and Madison walked by his side as they made their way into City Hall, the pair of them eager to start the working day.

"So, what brings you here today?" she wondered from Jonathan who shrugged airily.

"Another testimony today," he drawled out. "I'll soon be spending more time here then I do at my own Asylum."

"I thought it was Arkham Asylum?" Madison taunted him. "It doesn't have your name anywhere in it."

"It should do," Jonathan said back to her, a hint of knowing and cockiness in his voice as he said it. Madison rolled her eyes as they entered the building, looking around it slowly as it seemed to be eerily quiet. Jonathan checked his watch, wondering what was happening. It was ten to nine in the morning. Normally a flurry of activity was going on in the building.

"Madison!" Rachel's voice suddenly snapped out as she appeared from around the corner and rushed over to her intern and the doctor, taking hold of the young girl by the arm gently as she did so. "We need to get out of here."

"What's going on?" Madison enquired from Rachel who began to pull her out towards the exit, shaking her head in disbelief as she did so.

"Transportation of Williams didn't go as planned," Rachel panicked. "They managed to bring him here and place him into a holding cell, but, he's escaped."

"What?" Madison snapped out whilst Jonathan arched a brow in wonder.

"And how did he escape?" Crane was the one to ask and Rachel looked up to him, slightly off put by his question as she blinked quickly, looking back into the building as she did so.

"We're not sure," she admitted. "We don't know where he is so a full evacuation of the building has been done."

"What do we do now?" Madison shrugged.

"The police are on their way. I suggest you go home and sit tight until he is found," Rachel replied.

"What about you?" Madison asked and Rachel searched her intern's eyes and found caring in them. It was the first time she had looked at her with such emotion. Rachel placed a hand onto her shoulder and smiled gently as she saw Carl Finch move up the steps to City Hall.

"I have Carl," she assured Madison. "Now, go."

"Yes," Carl's voice suddenly joined them. "I'm sorry about all of this."

"There's nothing to apologise for, Mr Finch," Jonathan declared as sirens were heard in the distance for backup to join the small number of officers already in City Hall.

"Now go," Rachel urged Madison who turned around and began to move down the steps of the Hall and then back across to the car park.

"How unfortunate," Jonathan mumbled as he moved by Madison's side, his eyes still looking around for any sign of Williams. He noted how Madison did the same as him, but, her complexion was nowhere near as calm as his was. She looked nervous and on edge as they neared her car and she unlocked it.

"Are you going to be okay to drive?" Jonathan asked from her and she nodded quickly, looking around the parking lot with worry as she did so.

"I'll be fine," she promised him.

"Stop!" a sudden voice snapped at the pair of them and Madison looked across to Jonathan who sighed once, removing his glasses from his eyes as he did so. He turned around to see the man in the orange jumpsuit move closer to them and he wondered where the cursed police were.

Jonathan placed his briefcase onto the curve of the boot of Madison's car before he nodded once at her and they heard the man come closer.

"What are you doing?" he snapped whilst Jonathan snapped his case open and popped something into his sleeve, grabbing the brown cloth as he did so and closing his case. "Hey! I asked you a question!" the man roared and Madison noted the gun he was waving about in his hand as Jonathan acted quickly, allowing him to come closer before he placed the mask onto his head.

Madison froze at what she was seeing. What was Jonathan doing? What was even happening?

"I thought you'd like to see my mask?" Jonathan enquired from him and the man arched a brow, the gun falling by his side as he did so and Jonathan pounced, raising his arm and allowing the toxin to spray him in the face, causing him to scream out in pain and Jonathan picked his briefcase back up, hitting him over the head with it to silence his cries.

He smirked once from behind the burlap mask and then looked to where Madison stood by the side of her car, her eyes wide with fear as she tried to open the door to her vehicle. Jonathan dashed forwards, his arms wrapping around her waist as he spun her around, slamming her back against the car.

"What the hell are you?" she barked at him, struggling against his hold as he tilted his head to the side to examine her.

"Your favourite nightmare," he declared before raising his hand and spraying her in the face. She slowly began to scream until her body began to give up and she slumped against her car, Jonathan catching her before she fell to the ground.

_Now the fun can begin, Jonathan._

...

A/N: Thank you to Ariddle-Ascare, Fangirl-Karla, Invisible-Ayla, Shadow-Schemer1991 and reverie-scriptor for reviewing!

Please let me know what you think!


	13. Chapter 13

"No...get them off of me...get them off..." Madison complained; her voice low and full of fright. Jonathan quickly managed to pull her from his car, his arm wrapping around her waist before he knocked her off of her feet, cradling her close to him as he walked into Arkham.

"Dr Crane," the receptionist spoke as soon as she saw Jonathan from the desk behind the glass she was working inside of. She arched a brow, chewing on her gum as she noted her boss carrying a girl who looked slightly recognisable to her. "Isn't that the snooty DA?"

"Miss Walters," Jonathan confirmed for her, coughing once and turning his head away out of politeness. "There has been a terrible breakout. We were on the way to the parking lot and Miss Walters here tripped."

"And why is she here?" the receptionist asked him and Jonathan looked at her with narrowed eyes before glancing back onto Madison who was still talking gently in her unconscious state.

"She could hardly stay at City Hall. It is too dangerous; what with this criminal on the loose. No, I decided to bring her back here. I have medicine for when she wakes up."

"Do you need me to call anyone for you?" the receptionist wondered. "She may be slightly off when she wakes up. Doesn't she need a hospital?"

"No," Jonathan said slowly, making sure that he didn't answer too quickly. She would only be worried if she heard him sound so defensive. Jonathan smiled reassuringly at her for a moment before he adjusted Madison in his arms. "I'll take her to my office. Give her some time to calm down."

"Fair enough, Doctor Crane," the receptionist shrugged. Jonathan thanked himself for hiring someone who barely cared about what happened in the Asylum. He didn't want people nosing into his business. It would do him no good.

Jonathan unlocked his office, slowly depositing Madison down onto the sofa which sat in the corner of it as he knelt by her side, his face giddy like a child's with excitement as he grabbed onto her wrist and checked her pulse. The dosage wasn't that high. She'd wake up in another hour or so. He made sure the dosage wasn't damaging.

The only worry he had was her waking up and remembering what he did. He was going to have to try and stop that from happening. He couldn't have her knowing who he really was. No, he was pretty sure that she would forget what had happened to her.

"No...get them off me...please..." Madison continued to sob gently and he watched as her hands move onto her arms, rubbing frantically and he wondered what it was that she feared. He took a seat in his chair and continued to go ahead with his paperwork. There was no point in sitting there and watching her in her drugged state.

_Do you have any idea what you could do to her?_

"No," Jonathan muttered to the voice in his head. "I don't intend to kill her or do her any more damage. She's going to wake up and I'm going to lie to her."

_You've already drugged her! She's already in a state of worry. And besides, you've already drugged her once, Jonathan. One more time can't hurt._

"I know that it could," Jonathan mumbled out, writing down on his paper. "I should never have done it in the parking lot. I panicked."

_The ice cold Doctor Crane panicked?_

"Yes, laugh all you want. I froze and worried about what he was going to do. Once I drugged him then I had no choice but to drug Madison. This way I can manipulate what she thinks she saw. It really is quite simple."

_So there is a plan? But, you're losing your touch. You shouldn't be protecting her._

"I'm protecting myself," Jonathan denied, looking down onto the small writing of a nurse who had done him a report. "I don't protect other people or even care for them. Surely you know that?"

_I thought I did until you brought her back here. Madison Walters will be the death of you._

"Considering you're in my mind, you do talk nonsense."

_I disagree. I'm the part of you which talks sense. I'm the part of you which you want to listen to more, aren't I, Jonathan?_

"Yes, keep telling yourself that. If you don't mind, I have work to do and then explaining."

...

Madison stirred lightly, her eyes adjusting to the light which was flooding into her line of vision. She placed a hand against her head, gingerly sitting up and looking around the room which she was in. But, her eyes finally landed on the man sat by his desk, his eyes glancing downwards at paperwork and Madison leant back against the sofa.

"You're awake," Jonathan spoke clearly, his eyes still looking down onto his work whilst Madison felt her head pound. "How are you feeling?"

"Crap. What happened?" Madison asked from him as he stood up, pulling out a cup and filling it with water whilst she grumbled under her breath.

"You tripped," Jonathan lied to her. "We were in the parking lot and you fell over your own feet."

"What?" Madison wondered, none of it really making any sense as Jonathan pushed open a couple of pills from the plastic container they were held in. He took them into his hand, walking over to the sofa and taking a seat on the edge of it. He handed her the cup and dropped the pills into her hand as she looked at him with suspicion.

"City Hall was being evacuated, Madison. Williams escaped from his holding cell and you were told to leave. I walked out with you and you tripped in the parking lot. I managed to get you back here," Jonathan lied to her and Madison looked onto her lap, placing the white round tablets into her mouth. She drained the water and ran a hand over her cheek, trying to recollect what had happened to her.

"Everything seems so blurry," Madison complained to Jonathan who sniffed once, nodding in agreement as he did so. He placed a hand onto his glasses and pulled them off, rubbing the lens on the edge of his jacket as he did so. "I can't remember it."

"Well, there really isn't anything to remember, Madison," Jonathan promised her, a small smile held on his lips as he did so. Did he bring it up? He wanted to bring it up. He wanted to know. "But, you were talking in your unconscious state. It seemed as if you were having some nightmare."

"Was I?" Madison wondered, her hand resting on her forehead as she did so. She closed her eyes for a second before looking back at Jonathan, unable to remember what she was talking about in her sleep. "I can't remember."

"It's not important," Jonathan forced himself to nod and smile at her before he stood back up, walking back over to his desk and looking onto his paperwork. "I shall take you home when you feel like going."

"Why did you bring me back here?" Madison asked him and he resisted the urge to roll his eyes before he placed his glasses back onto his nose.

"I needed to get away from City Hall. Coming here seemed logical as I couldn't really remember where you lived," Jonathan explained to her. "I knew that you didn't need a hospital, just somewhere to lie down."

"Oh," Madison replied. It seemed plausible to her that he would do that. He was just being pleasant and sensible. That was all. "Well...thanks...I mean...you didn't have to bring me back."

"Well, I was hardly going to leave you in a parking lot when a murderer is on the loose."

"Yes," Madison replied. He made it sound logical. She just felt like she had a large hangover on her hands. She'd never felt so terrible in her life, even after drinking a whole litre of pure vodka. "Well. I'll call a cab if I have to."

"No need," Jonathan promised her, straightening out the final paperwork before he watched Madison try to stand up. "And take it easy," he demanded her as she tried to step forwards in the heels which she wore. She didn't get too far before she collapsed back down onto the sofa. Jonathan sighed to himself, offering his hand to her. She took it, feeling the coldness of his skin and he helped to pull her up from the sofa.

"Whoa," Jonathan mumbled as she stumbled again and his arm wrapped around her waist, holding her tightly against his side as she bowed her head, moaning gently as she rested her head against his arm and he looked down at her, feeling something churn in his stomach at the sight of her. What would he have been like if he gave her a large dosage? He'd have felt...well...he wouldn't have been pleased. The voice would have been.

"Take it slowly," Jonathan urged her quietly as he opened the door to his office and Madison did as he had instructed her, holding tightly onto him as she did so. The pair of them moved back down the corridors and out into the car park. Jonathan helped her into his car and closed the door on her. He'd placed her bag in there from earlier, deciding not to leave any evidence that she had been at the parking lot with the murderer.

"Close your eyes," Jonathan instructed her as he drove down the streets of Gotham and Madison looked at him with wide orbs.

"Why?"

"It will help lessen the pain in your head," he assured her and she did as he had said, closing her eyes and feeling slight relief as Jonathan continued to drive down to her house. As soon as he pulled up outside he helped her out from the car once again, placing her bag onto his free hand and then walking to her door. Before he had the chance to knock, it flung open. Danny stood in the doorway, his face pale white with shock and worry as he saw his little sister stood there.

"What happened?" he worried. "It's been all over the news. They found Williams in the parking lot knocked out."

"Your sister tripped," Jonathan explained and Danny took her hand, slowly pulling her to him as she dropped her head against his chest. "She's still not completely right. I took her back to Arkham to give her some time to rest."

"Doesn't she need the hospital?"

"I don't need the hospital," Madison complained, still leaning against her brother whilst Jonathan looked at her and nodded in agreement with her observation.

"She just needs some sleep."

"Well...thank you..." Danny managed to worm the words out and Madison looked back across to Jonathan.

"Can you give us a minute?" she asked her brother and he arched a brow but nodded. Jonathan handed him his sister's bag before Danny moved back down the hall. Madison closed the door to and leant against the brick wall, studying Jonathan as he did the same back to her.

"What did you need?" he asked, wondering why she had dismissed her brother from their presence.

"Just to say thanks again," Madison shrugged.

"You don't need to keep apologising," Jonathan promised her. She wouldn't be doing if she knew what he had really done.

"Well, thanks," Madison said again, leaning forwards and allowing her lips to linger on his cheek. Jonathan froze, his hands gently resting on her waist as she wrapped hers around his upper arms, her lips still by his cheek as he wondered what she was doing as she pulled back, looking into his eyes.

Jonathan remained emotionless, too shocked by the sudden turn of events to even contemplate doing anything in response to her small peck. But, he had no need to really act. Madison was the one to move forwards slowly, her lips landing on his in a chaste kiss. Jonathan seemed to stiffen even more, his eyes wide open whilst she closed hers and then stepped backwards. She knew it had been brief and she knew that Jonathan hadn't reacted. He hadn't even bothered to do anything.

"Sorry," Madison said to him. "I don't know what came over me...it must be me...well...not feeling too good..."

"Yes. It must be," Jonathan said, making the excuse for her as she nodded once, looking as if she was about to cry. "Anyway, I'd best be going."

"Yes," Madison agreed with a small smile. "I suppose so."

Jonathan quickly turned on his heel whilst Madison moved back into her house, shaking her head and kicking her shoes off as she moved up to her room, ignoring her brother's questions as she did so.

Jonathan sat in his car, looking straight ahead with a confused expression, his finger moving to his plump lips and resting on them, wondering why there were still tingling. It had been the briefest of contact. He shouldn't feel anything. Before he had the chance to contemplate it, he head his cell begin to ring. He picked it and smirked once, any thoughts of Madison Walters pushed from his mind as he answered the phone.

"Mr Falcone. What can I do for you?"


	14. Chapter 14

"What are you doing, Madison?" Danny asked when he noted his little sister sat on the floor of the kitchen, her legs crossed and her eyes looking into the clear glass of the oven as she did so. She'd spent approximately half an hour scolding herself over kissing Jonathan. How stupid had she been? What made her think that he'd ever want her to throw herself at him? But, then she put it down to her being incoherent. She could play that card with him. He'd believe it.

And then she had phoned Rachel, making sure that she was safe and okay. She informed her that she was fine, saying that the criminal had been caught and was currently in a bad way. They had no idea how he had been knocked out, but, he had been found near Madison's car. Madison didn't dwell on it for too long. She was simply happy that Rachel was safe.

"Making sure that the pastry doesn't burn," Madison responded to her brother, playing with the material of her blue vest top as she pulled it further down her back to cover the top of her jeans. She sighed for a moment and pushed a hand through her brown curls, looking up to Danny who had moved over to the fridge to pull out a beer.

"Why are you baking?" Danny wondered, his nose wrinkling for a moment as Madison rolled her eyes and he tossed a can down to her. She pulled the puller up and drained off some of the alcohol, turning back to looking at the pastry in the pie dish.

"I felt like it," Madison shrugged once. "Is that a crime?"

"I don't know. You're the DA. You tell me," Danny joked back with her and she shook her head once at him as he downed some of his alcohol and Madison turned hers around in her hands as she did so, yawning once before looking back up to Danny. "Mom and dad are out tonight anyway."

"Where are they going?"

"It's Uncle Matthew and Aunty Belinda's anniversary. There having both brothers and sisters there." Danny reminded Madison and she nodded, remembering that they had mentioned something about going out. "They're at the mall now. They did call when you were in your room to ask about the escaped criminal. I said that you were fine."

"Right," Madison simply said back to her brother before they heard the doorbell ring. "I can't go," she said, pointing to her oven. "I'm doing my pastry."

"I'll go then," Danny spoke, placing his can down onto the worktop and then moving over to the doorway. Madison remained sat on the floor, still looking at the oven and not listening as Danny closed the door, allowing the guest into the home.

"She's in the kitchen," Danny informed the man and he nodded before moving down the hallway and into the kitchen. He remained stood in the doorway for a second, looking onto the floor whilst Madison sat there, too intrigued by the oven to notice anything happening around her.

"Madison," Danny suddenly appeared again, moving past Jonathan and into the kitchen where his sister turned to look up to him. He nodded over in Jonathan's direction and Madison's eyes widened before she scrambled to her feet, placing her beer onto the worktop as Danny picked his back up. "Visitor."

"I can see," Madison replied to her brother who leant against the worktop, making himself comfortable whilst Jonathan placed his hands behind his back and Madison glared at her brother, wondering what he was doing. "You can go, Danny."

"I can," he agreed but didn't move. Madison walked over to him and he watched her as she grabbed onto his arm, twisting it behind his back as he looked behind her in pain. Jonathan remained stood where he was, quite amused with the scenario. Clearly Danny was trying to be the protective big brother.

"What are you doing? You're going to break my wrist," he informed his baby sister as she forced him through the door and into the living room. He shook his head, regretting that he taught her that movement. "You know that there are something's I wished I never showed you?"

"I get it," Madison promised him, shutting the living room door and then moving back into the kitchen.

"Hey," she greeted Jonathan properly and he coughed into his palm once and waved a brown file in her direction.

"Hello," he replied. "I forgot to give you this back. You dropped it in the parking lot and I quickly threw it into my car. I thought that you may need it."

"Oh," Madison said. He often saw the disappointment on her face when he did something logical. She took it from him and placed it onto the small kitchen table. "Thanks for that."

"No problem," he promised her, his voice soft as he did so. "So, you're spending your day off by baking?"

"Yeah," Madison replied, looking back at the oven as he did so, pointing to it with her thumb. "Pumpkin Pie."

"Interesting," Jonathan said, sounding anything other than interested before he noted the beer can which she had been drinking and he looked back to her. She didn't seem like the beer type of girl. "Anyway, I thought that I'd drop that off. I have to be going. I need to write up a report."

"Okay," Madison spoke as he turned on his heel and began to move over to the door. She followed him down the hallway and opened the door for him as he adjusted his tie. She stood on the step in front of the door and Jonathan turned back up to look at her as she took a deep breath, beginning to make her decision on apologising to him.

"Look, I'm sorry about earlier," she informed Jonathan and he arched a brow, grinning as she blushed red and shrugged gently. "I wasn't thinking straight. I didn't really know what I was doing."

"I think you knew exactly what you were doing," Jonathan replied to her and she blinked quickly in his direction, her eyes staring into his as she thought about what to say. "You're just making excuses because your behaviour was inappropriate."

"It probably was," Madison agreed with him. "I should have...well...I just shouldn't have done it."

"Possibly not," Jonathan confirmed. "But, doing the right thing isn't always the best thing."

"Don't say something like that to someone who is supposed to enforce the law," she joked with him and he shrugged at her. "Anyway, I'm sorry again."

"Well, I have an idea what we can do to make it even," Jonathan said and Madison arched a brow, waiting for an explanation before she felt Jonathan move closer to her, his lips slowly moving onto hers for a second. It was Madison's turn to look confused as Jonathan pulled back and placed his hands into his pockets. She even felt disappointed that it hadn't lasted longer than two seconds.

"Now we're even," Jonathan declared, still smirking before he walked back to his car and Madison remained confused.

_What the hell are you doing?_

"Having some fun," Jonathan informed the voice in his head as he drove through the streets of Gotham. "Messing with Madison's mind is rather enjoyable."

_You're not messing with her mind. You enjoyed that, didn't you? You enjoyed the contact with her. You're going soft with her._

"Don't talk silly. I don't have the option to go soft, as you put it. Madison is simply a little distraction. God only knows that I need one with you always in my head."

_Just make sure that's all she is. You don't want to get in deep, do you, Jonathan?_

"I won't. I know what I'm doing."

...

"You would never believe what has happened?" Rachel snapped as soon as she saw Madison in her office, placing away the file which Jonathan had brought back to her the previous day. She looked across to Rachel, pushing her hair behind her ear as she did so. She was still reeling from the kiss from the day before. She felt like a silly schoolgirl. It was ridiculous. She'd been daydreaming all day.

"What?" Madison asked, moving from the dream she had been in.

"Doctor Crane has diagnosed one of Falcone's thugs as criminally insane. There's no history of mental illness with him and he's moved him from Blackgate to his Asylum."

"And?" Madison wondered. "Maybe he is ill?"

"No," Rachel said confidently. "He isn't. Why would he do this?"

"I don't know," Madison replied. "There has to be some legitimate reason, Rachel. He wouldn't do it if there wasn't."

"I don't know," Rachel admitted. "All I know is that it isn't right. I'm certain of it."

...

Thank you to Fangirl-Karla, reverie-scriptor, ari87 and Rachel for reviewing! I'm glad you're all enjoying it. So, please, if you're reading do leave me a little review! Please?


	15. Chapter 15

"You've been quiet all afternoon," Jonathan commented after two hours with Madison in the same room. She'd been using the spare courtroom to prep for her first time questioning the next day. Rachel was finally giving her the opportunity to stand up in court and put her point across. She would be there, of course, to make sure her intern didn't get swallowed up. She knew Madison could hold her own when she put her mind to it. She just hoped that she would be fine. Jonathan had gone into the courtroom, claiming that he needed somewhere quiet to finish off his report before he handed it into the judge. She'd smiled timidly at him when he first walked in, nodding before returning to her notes.

"I'm busy," Madison informed him. "I'm going up in court tomorrow. Rachel's given me the chance to prosecute."

"Which case?" Jonathan enquired, pushing his glasses further onto his nose. He sat at the table where the defence sat; leaning back and turning his head ninety degrees so that he could look onto Madison. Her eyes remained focused on the paperwork before her as she spoke back to Jonathan.

"The Matthews case," she informed him and Jonathan's mouth allowed a small 'ah' to escape his lips. He'd just been on the Matthew's case and had the man transferred to Arkham. Clearly the DA's office wanted to challenge that motion. "Rachel was working on it this morning."

"As was I," Jonathan replied and Madison sighed, running a hand down her hair in frustration before she looked across the small walkway and over to where Jonathan was staring back at her. "I had him transferred to Arkham."

"We're protesting against your decision," Madison shrugged, trying to be breezy. "Rachel doesn't see what is wrong with him."

"Do you?" Jonathan wondered, arching a brow at her as her eyes shifted around the room and she bit down on her bottom lip. Did she tell him the truth?

"I can't see any record of mental health issues," she responded, flicking through the stacks of paper which sat in front of her as Jonathan watched her small fingers pick them up and scan through them. "All I can see is a man who butchers for the mob."

"Yes, well," Jonathan said, a smug smirk occupying his features as he did so. "You're not a psychiatrist, are you?"

"Maybe not," Madison responded, not liking the tone of his voice as she did so. He was patronising her. "I know when someone isn't insane though, Doctor Crane."

"Doctor Crane?" Jonathan spoke, his voice low as he removed his glasses, resting his elbow onto the desk as he did so. "I had thought that we'd gone past formalities after our previous encounters?"

"We're at work," Madison mumbled, looking back onto her white sheets to conceal the scarlet rising in her cheeks whilst thinking about the previous day. "We're supposed to be professional."

"Of course, Miss Walters," Jonathan responded in a mutter.

Madison focused on her work for another few moments, trying to give it her full attention, but, that was hard when the man sat across the way had brought up their previous activities.

Jonathan finally stood up after another ten minutes, placing his paperwork into his briefcase and shrugging back into his jacket which had sat on the back of his chair. He took one more swift glance over to Madison before he pushed the gate to the public gallery open and began to walk to the exit.

"Why are you doing it?" her voice rang out as soon as he was a metre from the doorway. He remained with his back to her, sighing and gritting his teeth before he turned around to face her. She had her upper body rotated on the chair so she could look back at him and her eyes were scrutinising his.

"I assume you are talking about the Matthews case?" Jonathan checked and she nodded, wondering if she should have just left it.

"You can surely see that there is nothing wrong with him, can't you?" she checked, standing up and picking her paperwork up as she did so, skimming through it once again. "I mean...there's nothing, is there? He's of perfectly sound health."

"So why do you think I would testify otherwise, Miss Walters?" Jonathan asked her and she shrugged, pacing up and down her table, her heels clicking against the floor. Her eyes were focused on the paper as she spoke back to him.

"I don't know," she admitted. "I don't know what you're doing. I know that you're a psychiatrist and it is your job to pick up on the mentally unstable...but...Matthews? He's anything but that. I can tell."

"As I said before," Jonathan drawled out, his voice low as a small smile moved onto his face in disbelief. "You're not a psychiatrist."

"You don't need to be a psychiatrist to see that there is nothing wrong with him," Madison replied, her eyes rising back into Crane's as he pulled at the tie against his chest and Madison crossed her legs, the paperwork fell in her hands to rest against her stomach as she raised a brow in his direction.

"Well, I do," Jonathan responded. "I wouldn't testify otherwise, would I, Miss Walters?"

"That's the part that is troubling me," Madison admitted to him. "He's one of Falcone's men."

"Well observed," Jonathan spoke back snidely. "Do you think that means anything to me?"

"We both know that Falcone runs this city," Madison informed him. "And that could mean that he runs you."

Jonathan had to resist the grimace which wanted to move onto his features as he shook his head slowly, his eyes glancing onto the floor. What did he say back to that? Right in one, Miss Walters? No, it was a delicate subject.

"Do you think that I could be bought?" Jonathan asked. He'd have to play this advantage. He'd be the one to make her squirm, not the other way round. "Do you consider me so low?"

"You know that I don't," Madison complained to him, flapping her arms by her side as she pushed through the gate, throwing the paper onto the desk as she did so. She folded her arms against her chest, slowly walking closer to him as she did so. "I just wonder if you don't have a choice."

"I'm a psychiatrist, Madison," Jonathan informed her, using her first name to add a personal touch. "Now, the mob has not been in touch with me and Mr Falcone has no contact with me. I work for myself. I'm sorry if I can see the underlying issues with Mr Matthews, but, I've seen it before in many people. It happens, Madison."

"I'm not saying that it doesn't," Madison responded. "I'm simply saying that it seems odd."

"Mental health issues do not need to be apparent," Jonathan promised her. "I know what I'm doing. Why can you not see that? How could you think me to be so corrupt?"

Madison took in a sharp breath, tucking a strand of hair behind her ear as she did so. Jonathan watched the way she guiltily looked away from him before she shrugged, managing to bring her orbs back onto his pale face.

"I'm sorry," she simply said. "I...I don't really know what else to say."

"There's nothing more to say," Jonathan promised her. "Now, I have work to do and I am sure you do. I suppose I shall be seeing you in court tomorrow?"

"Yes," Madison replied and Jonathan nodded, turning on his heel swiftly and pushing the door open slightly.

"I am sorry," Madison spoke out again and he turned his head to look over his shoulder as she ran a hand up and down her bare arm and he simply allowed a small smile to leave his features.

...

"Congratulations or your genius little plan, Miss Dawes," Jonathan hissed as soon as he saw the woman catch up with him after calling out his name. Rachel remained stood on the spot where she was, looking as Doctor Crane stared back to her. "Having Miss Walters to question me in court is a good idea of yours."

"I don't know what you mean," Rachel denied. "I simply wanted to make sure that you were aware of the timings for tomorrow."

"I think you know exactly what I mean," Jonathan replied back to her, still smirking as he did so. "You believe Miss Walters and I to be in some relationship due to her apparent signs of behaving like a schoolgirl whenever I am brought up and also because of the flowers which I sent. You intended to use that to your advantage, having her question me in court and hope for me to change my mind about Matthews because you think that I'm wrong. You wanted Miss Walters to see things from your perspective and go against me, persuading me to change my expert opinion because I want to keep her happy and do the right thing. I know that you think I'm corrupt because of this, but, Miss Walters seems to think otherwise."

Rachel took a moment to digest in what he had just told her and she blinked profusely, almost feeling sickened by what she was hearing. She had to admit that she had hoped that Madison would be able to find out why he was testifying wrongly. She'd seen the way her intern stared after him and spoke about him. She thought that it would be useful. But, he'd seen straight through her act. And Madison has bought his.

"I am giving her the chance to speak in court," Rachel said, standing tall and looking back at Crane. He didn't intimidate her. He never would do. "I don't think that you're as honest as you claim to be."

"What suggestion are you making?" Jonathan asked from her, holding his briefcase tightly by the handle. "You should be careful, Miss Dawes. You're not entitled to speak to me like this."

"Madison will be a good DA. I'm letting her show it to me and everyone else."

"Yes, I am sure she will," Jonathan humoured her. "I've had a word with her just now, telling her my expert opinion on Matthews. She understood, Miss Dawes. It is a shame you're not as understanding."

"What did you say to her?" Rachel enquired quickly from him and he chuckled.

"Nothing that would incriminate me like you so desire," Jonathan responded. "Now, if you'll excuse me, I must be going. I have far more important things to do other than stand here and explain myself to you."

...

"Are you seeing Doctor Crane?" Rachel asked from Madison as soon as she found her in the empty office stood by the filing cabinet and pretending it was a dock, practicing her technique on questioning for the next day.

"No," Madison replied. "Why?"

"You need to stay away from him," Rachel spoke quickly to her and Madison arched a brow, her eyes growing wide as she did so. "There's something wrong with him. I've just bumped into him and had heated words...he's not right, Madison. He's hiding something from us."

"Rachel," Madison groaned at hearing that and she leant against the metal makeshift dock. "He's just looking deeper into Matthews case then we are. He told me as much."

"And do you believe him?" Rachel wondered quickly. "Do you honestly think that we can trust him?"

"I don't see why we shouldn't," Madison shrugged. "He told me that he was giving his expert opinion. We're not psychiatrists, Rachel."

"But we're not blind, either," Rachel spoke quickly back to her. "You can't honestly tell me that there is something wrong with Williams?"

"I don't know," Madison admitted and Rachel sighed.

"You're becoming blinded, Madison," she warned her intern. "This futile crush which you have on Doctor Crane is not giving you the chance to see things clearly."

"Futile crush?" Madison snapped at her mentor. "It is not a futile crush!"

"I know that you like him, Madison. I just don't think that he feels the same way," Rachel admitted with a shrug. "I don't think that he is capable of feeling the same way. He seems too cold."

"You don't know anything about him," Madison replied with a shake of her head, grabbing her notes and pushing them into her satchel whilst Rachel sighed.

"Neither do you, Madison." She warned her. "Surely you can see that something isn't right with what he is doing."

"We don't know," Madison replied. "We don't understand how the mind works like he does. Maybe he is ill. How do we know? We don't. That's why we ask Jonathan to come here."

"Jonathan?" Rachel checked with her. "You're on first name terms now?"

"Maybe," Madison shrugged back. "It has nothing to do with my work life. My home life is completely separate."

"Not when you see the same people in both," Rachel shook her head. "Doctor Crane isn't who you seem to think he is...I think that he's testifying wrongly."

Madison glared at her for a moment before she shook her head.

"Are you implying that he is corrupt?" she snapped out, her eyes glaring at the woman stood opposite her in the office as she sighed softly, shrugging gently before looking back to her intern.

"I don't know," she admitted. "But, I do know that a relationship with him isn't something which you should be chasing. I can tell you that much."

"With all due respect, Rachel," Madison said, placing her bag onto her shoulder, "I'll be the one to decide that."

...

"Is that all you'll be?" Madison barked as soon as she opened the door to Jonathan's office. The young doctor was sat behind his desk; his glasses perched on the end of his nose as he looked down onto his notes with intent. Her sudden yelling brought him back out of the daydream world which he was in and onto her. She was looking at him with fury as she slammed the door shut. "You're just a futile crush, aren't you?"

"Come in, Madison," Jonathan said with sarcasm evident in his voice as he did so and she glared at him.

"I don't know what's happening here," Madison admitted, flouncing into the seat opposite his desk. "You're confusing the crap out of me."

"What are you talking about?" Jonathan wondered, dropping his pen whilst he continued to watch her. "You've burst into my office and demanded to know if I'm a futile crush. I have the right to be confused."

"So do I!" Madison snapped back at him. "You kissed me and then you said nothing about it! Did it mean anything to you?"

"Let me get this straight," Jonathan sighed, "you've come all the way down to Arkham, screaming about if a kiss meant anything to me?"

"Jesus," Madison complained, dropping her head into her hands as she did so. "I just had an argument with Rachel."

"Now we're getting somewhere," Jonathan replied with a stern nod. "What did she say?"

"She thinks that you're corrupt in some way. She thinks that I'm becoming too attached to you...and that it is stopping me from seeing things clearly about the Matthew's case," Madison grumbled, looking back at him and he nodded.

"I see," he replied, treating her like a patient.

"She thinks that I have a crush on you and that the feeling isn't reciprocated," Madison informed him.

"And what do you think?"

"I don't know," Madison admitted. "You kissed me last night."

"I did," Jonathan replied before there was a knock at his door. "Enter!" he demanded.

"Doctor Crane, a patient's attempted to slit his wrists. It's quite serious." The receptionist informed him and he nodded.

"Page Doctor Jenner. I shall be down in a moment," Jonathan instructed her, standing up as she closed the door. Madison did the same, picking her bag back up and shaking her head in disbelief.

"I'm sorry," she apologised. "I shouldn't have come down here like this."

"It's fine," he promised her, reaching out for his white coat and placing it onto his shoulders as he did so.

"You must think I'm crazy," Madison laughed once in hysterics and he grinned back to her.

"I see crazies ever day," he replied. "I don't think you're one of them."

"Right," Madison said. "I'll go then."

"Yes," Jonathan agreed as she moved to the door. He didn't know what came over him that moment as he instantly reached out for her wrist, turning her back around to face him as his other hand moved up to her neck, feeling the goose bumps which were building there as she felt her back press against his door.

"Don't you have a patient to see?" Madison wondered as he nodded once in agreement, his lips slowly moving down onto Madison's.

"In a moment," he declared, pressing his lips against hers as his hands gently held onto her waist and he pressed her body closer against the door, engulfing her entire mouth with his, slowly kissing her as she moaned against him. He pulled away a second later, leaving her looking exhilarated but disappointed that it didn't last longer. "Now, I have a patient to see."

"Hmm," Madison responded as he backed away from her and she opened the door. He escorted her to reception before leaving her to make her own way from the building as he took the steps to the third floor.

_There had best be an explanation for that._

"Of course," Jonathan mumbled to the voice. "Madison was in doubt about me. I need to make sure that all doubt is washed away."

_You're brainwashing her not to have a negative opinion of you? How does that help anyone?_

"It keeps her fighting my battles against Miss Dawes and hopefully it keeps her off of my back."

_Just don't fall for her, Jonathan. _

"That's not my intention."

...

A/N: Phew, quite a long chapter there. The tension is certainly rising. Anyway, I would like to say a big thanks to the overwhelming responses I got yesterday. So, thank you to reverie-scriptor, Fangirl-Karla, Teacupful, Shadow-Schemer1991, Undertaker's Hattress, Ariddle-Ascare, Guest, Mockingbird's Purity, InLoveAndCrazy and my final Guest for reviewing the story!

Thank you so much, guys! Please, do let me know what you all think so far. Much more to come soon!


	16. Chapter 16

"You didn't go on easy on him in there," Rachel commended Madison the next day when they left the courtroom, the two women walking side by side as they scurried back to Rachel's office. Madison looked up to Rachel who was staring straight ahead before she cocked her head to the side and shrugged one shoulder, unable to move the other due to the weight of her briefcase on her arm.

"You thought that I'd go easy on him?" Madison checked and Rachel looked back into her green eyes and sighed once, pushing her free hand through her hair as she did so.

"I don't know," she admitted. "I didn't know what to expect. But, you did well. You asked him all the questions which I would have."

"And he gave back some good answers," Madison replied and Rachel bit down on her bottom lip, grinding her teeth together in annoyance with Madison's truthfulness.

"Yes, he did," she admitted to the intern. "I know that you two have some chemistry...and yesterday...well...we shouldn't have fought about it. I'm just glad that you managed to pull it out of the bag today."

"You should know that I'm keeping work and social life separate, Rachel," Madison sighed as they stopped outside of her office and Rachel searched for the key to the door. Madison placed her arms by her side and looked pleadingly at her mentor, willing her to see that the job was important. "Doctor Crane and I are complicated. Him testifying doesn't mean that I'm going to sit there and go gooey eyed whilst watching him."

Rachel smiled back at Madison and nodded her head briefly at her before pushing her door open.

"I'm glad to hear it."

...

"I have to admit that you did well today," Jonathan informed Madison. She jumped in surprise at hearing his sudden voice and she turned around in her seat, looking behind her as he stood tall with his briefcase at his side and his coat draped across his arm. "I didn't expect you to be so harsh on me testifying."

"What can I say?" Madison asked him, playing innocent as she grinned up to him. "I'm just not one sweet, little DA."

"No," he agreed with her, a dark chuckle emitting from his lips as he did so. "You are most certainly not."

"What brings you here?" she wondered suddenly as Jonathan took the seat opposite her, his chair scraping against the floor as he pushed it back and Madison glanced back down onto the magazine which sat in front of her, wrapping both of her hands around the mug on the wooden table. Jonathan moved his coat from his arm, securely placing his briefcase between his feet as he spoke back to her.

"Would you find it odd if I asked Miss Dawes where you'd be for your lunch hour?" he arched a brow whilst Madison sipped on her coffee, taking a moment to wonder if he was serious or joking with her. And then she remembered who she was speaking to. Doctor Crane didn't do jokes.

"Slightly like a stalker?" she pondered; her head moving back down as she placed her cup against the wood and he chuckled again. The sound was terribly unnerving.

"If you like," he spoke. "In all seriousness, I asked her where you'd be. I wanted to say congratulations on your first time in court today."

"You didn't have to," Madison assured him. "I was just doing my job."

"Which, in turn, made my job a lot harder," he spoke, a small grimace falling onto his face as he did so. "Besides, extracting information from Miss Dawes is becoming increasingly difficult."

"She doesn't like you," Madison said simply, tucking her hair behind her ear as she did so and his lips curved upwards into a small smirk. She wondered what he would find so funny. "She thinks that there is something wrong with you."

"And what do you think?" Jonathan asked; his voice soft whilst he watched her roll her eyes at him.

"You know what I think," she spoke quickly back at him. "I don't rush down to any Asylum because I feel insecure, you know." She stated, smiling back at him with a flirtatious look in his eye. Normally Jonathan would have felt insecure. His mind would have been unsettled with a woman batting her eyelashes at him. But, no, not today. Today he was enjoying Madison looking at him like that.

"I take it that I'm special, then?" he checked and she picked up her coffee, still sipping on it as her lips refused to fall into a flat line.

"Perhaps," she admitted to him.

"I don't think 'perhaps' is the key word," he whispered to her, leaning forwards slightly as he did so. "It indicates a certain amount of doubt."

"Well, there's one way that we could eradicate that doubt," Madison assured him, leaning forward slightly herself whilst Jonathan took a second to look puzzled at what she had suggested. She jumped back upon seeing his face, shaking her head quickly as she did so and placing her hands into her lap, almost choking on the thought.

"I didn't mean that!" Madison shrieked out. "You don't need to look so worried."

"I never suggested anything," Jonathan replied.

"Your face looked mortified." She informed him.

"And because I looked mortified you instantly thought that I thought you meant sex?" Jonathan checked with her and Madison rephrased the question in her head, turning red whilst Jonathan continued to smirk, finding it quite amusing all of a sudden.

"Well...I didn't mean that...sex, I mean," Madison coughed and Jonathan nodded sternly.

"I thought not," he replied. "You don't look like the type of girl to put out on the first date."

"We haven't even had one of those. That was what I was suggesting. Not sex," Madison clarified as Jonathan checked his watch and looked down onto the magazine article which she was reading before he scraped his chair back.

"I see," Jonathan replied. "And is that what you want?"

"Is it what you want?" Madison wondered and he shrugged breezily which caused Madison to frown slightly at him. He could look a bit more interested. "If not then we don't need to bother."

"Seven o'clock," Jonathan spoke, placing his coat back onto his arms and then picking his briefcase from the floor. He pushed his glasses further onto his nose after they had slipped down and he looked over to the doorway of the cafe. "I'll meet you outside City Hall."

"Okay," Madison agreed, still grinning widely as she did so. Jonathan moved over to her, bending down to her height so his hair flopped into his face and his scent caught in Madison's throat. She didn't know what he was going to do as his lips neared her ear and his finger ran along her chin.

"You have some coffee around your mouth," he whispered softly, causing her to shiver before she jumped back, rubbing the sides of her mouth and he stood tall, congratulating himself on managing to make her react like he did. The shivers were enough to tell him that she was getting in too deep.

"I'll see you tonight," he spoke, turning on his heel and heading for the door with a swift glance.

Madison stared after him, shaking her head in disbelief before she turned back to her magazine article.

...

A/N: Thank you to Teacupful, Undertaker's Hattress, reverie-scriptor, Fangirl-Karla and Guest for reviewing.

Just a short chapter between Madison and Crane, the next one shall be interesting when they go on a date. I have many ideas! So, please do review and let me know what you think!


	17. Chapter 17

"You need to be careful," Rachel instructed her intern who was resisting the urge to roll her eyes as she tugged her brush through her brown curls, trying her upmost to tame them from the pulling at which they had received earlier. She'd spent her afternoon working with Rachel before they moved back to the office. Madison had told her that she couldn't work late and so Rachel had begun trawling through file after file on precedent for the case which they were about to work on.

"It is one date," Madison responded, looking down at her outfit and making sure that she looked appropriate as she pulled at the top half of the black dress which she wore. "He's not a criminal, Rachel."

"He's not right, either," Rachel said, sticking to her mantra before Madison stood up and pulled her coat onto her frame, buttoning it up and then pulling her hair from underneath the collar as she did so. Rachel looked up to her and sighed, realising that she could be right. She had no evidence against Doctor Crane. She just didn't trust him or his slime like personality.

"He just comes across as standoffish," Madison shrugged nonchalantly, brushing off Rachel's worries before she picked her bag up from the floor. "I can look after myself, Rachel. Doctor Crane isn't a threat to anyone, trust me."

"I trust you," Rachel declared with a stern nod. "It's just him that I don't trust."

Madison gave in trying to get the woman to change her opinion of the head psychiatrist. She had her mind made up and that was it. Her previous encounter with him was enough to tell her that he wasn't the type of man who wanted dates with a new intern. She thought that there was something going on, but, Madison seemed too naive to believe it.

"Yes, well," Madison drawled, "I'd better be going. I'll see you tomorrow."

"Be careful!" Rachel called after her as she shut the door to the office and made her way down the steps of City Hall. She saw him stood there with his hands in his pockets before he looked up to her and smirked once, nodding at her as she stood before him and beamed widely.

"Where are we going?" Madison asked him and he coughed once, seeming slightly on edge as he did so. He pushed his glasses further onto his nose and motioned to his car which sat in the parking lot.

"I thought that it would be much more convenient if we were to dine at my apartment," he declared and Madison's eyes went wide at hearing that, not sure if she liked the idea or not. She preferred mutual ground for a first date. But, she had been to his apartment before. Granted, she had not been coherent or conscious for the most part, but, she had been. "I attempted to gain a reservation at a nice restaurant but they are all fully booked. It seems that an hour's notice is not enough time."

"So...what are we going to eat?" Madison wondered as she began to walk by his side, struggling to keep up with his fast pace in her heels as he shrugged breezily, not too fussed about food. He had bigger things on his mind. He could have her at his apartment again and this time he didn't need to mess up. This time he could use the toxin on her. But, a small part of him refused to do so.

"I know an extremely good Chinese takeaway if that is okay by you?" he wondered and she nodded again at him.

"Sounds fine," she replied.

"So, if you follow me then we should be okay," Jonathan said and they both climbed into their own cars. Madison did her best to keep up with him and not allow any other car to block him out of her view as she did so. She had to admit that he did drive safely, sticking to speed limits and obeying traffic signs.

Once they reached his building he pulled up in the parking lot behind it, stopping his car in the correct spot as Madison pulled in to the side of it. She took a deep breath before climbing out of her vehicle, moving to his side as they began to walk up to the building in the cool evening air.

"Your apartment is nice," Madison commented as Jonathan shut the door and coughed to himself. She looked around the open spaced room, taking in the neatness of it all. His desk sat near a window and contained stacks of papers which were orderly. A bookshelf stood to the side of it, psychology and pharmacology being its subject areas. And a smallish TV sat on a stand opposite a leather sofa with a brown coffee table in front of it. If anything it reminded Madison of his office. Clinical and neat, just like him.

"I like to think so," Jonathan spoke, standing in front of her and holding his hand out to take her coat. He slowly moved over to the kitchen and placed it on the coat stand which stood outside of it. Madison rubbed her hands up and down her arms whilst Jonathan grabbed a bottle of wine from his cupboard.

"I'm driving," Madison said quickly and Jonathan arched a brow and looked sceptically at her. "One glass can't hurt, can it?" she wondered, changing her mind at his expression and he grinned, pouring her a glass and then handing it to her as she stood in the living room.

"I see you lost the Matthew's case again," Jonathan struck up conversation, settling himself down onto his sofa and Madison hesitantly perched at the other end of it, the glass held in both of her hands as she tapped against its side and shrugged. "Miss Dawes can't have taken that well."

"She didn't," Madison replied. "The verdict came in this afternoon when you'd gone. How did you know?"

"He was transferred to Arkham this afternoon," Jonathan said back to her. "He's in the secure wing and being treated for."

"That's good then...I suppose," Madison shrugged, sipping at the wine whilst Jonathan watched her with some intent. He pulled at his tie, lowering it down his shirt as Madison looked across to him.

"So have you lived in Gotham your entire life?" she struck up conversation about something other than work and Jonathan frowned, nodding once at her as he did so.

"Yes," he confirmed. "I was born in Gotham."

"And does your grandmother still live here?"

"My parents died when I was a small child," Jonathan spoke back to her, his voice emotionless and Madison jumped back slightly, feeling herself redden under embarrassment as she did so. "A car crash."

"I'm so sorry," Madison whispered and Jonathan shrugged.

"I never knew them that well," he assured her. "They didn't feel the usual joy over having a child when it came to me."

"Oh," Madison said and Jonathan shook his head, smiling widely as he drank some more of his wine and sat forwards. "I'm sorry."

"There is nothing to apologise for," he assured her airily. "It was a long time ago and it isn't something which I have dwelled upon. I see no reason for anyone else to sympathise. And no, in answer to your question. My grandmother died a few years back. She resented me as much as my parents did."

"But they're still your family," Madison pointed out and he chuckled again. If only she had any idea about the way they treated her. No, she didn't know anything about it and he didn't intend for her to know anything. He had the toxin in his bedroom. He could finish off what he started before. The voice told him to do that. But...Jonathan...he didn't want that. He didn't know why, but, he knew that drugging Madison would not be like anyone else. No, she was much too fun to keep around.

"They were," he agreed. "Anyway, we should steer away from that morbid subject, shouldn't we?"

"If you want to," Madison agreed and Jonathan rolled his eyes.

"You're not my shrink, Madison," he reminded her, his voice curt and holding a certain authority to it as Madison bit down on her tongue and drank some more of her wine. Jonathan shook his head and stood up, moving behind the sofa whilst she continued to stare at the blank TV screen, unsure of what to really say to him.

_Smooth move, Jonathan. Annoy the girl so it will be more interesting to dose her._

The voice in his head struck and he shook his head to himself, grabbing the menu for the Chinese from his notice board as he did so. No, the idea had crossed his mind. But, he was sure that people knew she would be with him. The risk outweighed the benefits.

"You can have anything which you like," Jonathan informed Madison, passing her the menu. She placed her glass down onto a coaster and began to flick through the menu, finally settling on a main course before Jonathan went to order via the phone. He returned a few seconds, settling himself back onto his sofa before his eyes looked across to Madison.

"I've never done this before," he suddenly blurted out to her and she arched a brow, leaning back and resting against the leather back of the sofa.

"What?" she wondered from him and he nodded over at her.

"I've never been on a date," he shrugged and Madison laughed once whilst Jonathan frowned.

"You've told me that before," Madison reminded him. "You informed me that your work was your life."

"As I did," Jonathan mused and Madison sighed, tucking her hair behind her ear as she shrugged one shoulder once, dropping the menu she'd been holding onto the arm of the sofa.

"So, what changed?" she couldn't resist asking him and he studied her face. He took in the slight chubbiness of her cheeks and the way her eyes went wide when she looked at him. He glanced at the stubborn set jaw which she had and the way her hair angled her face. She was ordinary. There was nothing special about her. Her hair didn't glow and her eyes didn't light up a room. "I mean...I get it that we stopped arguing...but...you always said that work came first."

"I remember," Jonathan simply told her. "I don't know what changed. Maybe it is better to have some kind of distraction from work every once in a while. I don't know."

"So that's all I am?" Madison wondered, her voice soft and warm. "I'm just a distraction?"

"I don't know what you want me to say, Madison," Jonathan replied honestly.

"Neither do I," Madison sighed softly.

"But," Jonathan whispered, moving closer to her as he did so, his hand moving upwards to cup her chin, "if it is any consolation, you are a very good distraction."

"Is that a compliment, Doctor Crane?" Madison wondered from him, feeling bolder than she felt. Alcohol had that effect on her.

"Take it how you want," Jonathan mumbled. He didn't really care. "It isn't going to change the outcome of my action."

Madison was the eager one, leaning forwards and latching her lips onto his. Jonathan was quite happy to allow her to take control for one moment. She began to move her body to straddle his, which he wasn't having. No, he wouldn't give her full control. Jonathan moved back down the sofa, his lips still on hers before he gently lowered her onto the sofa and she stayed in that position for the next ten minutes before her thoughts were interrupted.

"Jonathan," Madison gasped out as his hand moved to her hip and she heard the doorbell ring. "That'll be the food."

"Do you care about the food?" Jonathan wondered, already knowing her answer as she searched his eyes, wondering if he wanted the same thing that she did. Slowly, she shook her head from side to side before he grinned down at her, hearing the knock sound at the door. But, the pair of them ignored it. They were too wrapped up in their own world.

...

Madison awoke with a start, placing her palm onto her forehead before she looked around the room, sitting up and adjusting the shirt which sat on her body. She instantly knew that it was Jonathan's. She looked to her side at where he slept. He'd placed his pyjamas onto his body and was sleeping on his back, breathing shallowly as she watched him for a second.

Madison quickly checked the clock on the bedside table, the red LED lights informing her that it had just gone past three in the morning. She swore in her mind, carefully moving out of the bed and into the living area. She bent down to grab her bag, tucking her hair behind her ear as she did so. She pulled her mobile out from the satchel and checked it. Seven missed calls.

"Crap," Madison whispered. They were all from her brother. She shook her head, crouching down and texting him quickly, assuring him that she was okay. She was shocked that he hadn't come to Jonathan's apartment. Then again, she didn't say that was where she was going. She didn't really know that before seven o'clock.

She sent the text and placed her phone back into her bag, but, it quickly began to ring. Madison swore some more before picking it up and placing it to her ear, rushing to the bathroom and trying not to trip over Jonathan's rug on her way.

"Hello," Madison spoke in a hushed voice as she locked the door and looked into the mirror above the porcelain sink.

"Madison," Danny snapped down the phone. "What do you think you're doing? Where are you?"

"Calm down, Dan," she hissed, keeping her voice down so that she didn't wake Jonathan. "I'm fine."

"That doesn't answer my question," Danny yelled at her.

"I'm fine," Madison said again. "Look...I can't talk long."

"No, you can," he defied her. "Madison, where are you? Do you know how worried mom and dad have been? I've been going crazy!"

"I know," Madison replied. "I should have called earlier. I didn't...well...things changed..."

"Madison," Danny growled down the phone. "You're at his place, aren't you?"

"Danny," Madison sighed his name. "I can handle myself."

"Please tell me that you didn't, Mads. You're my baby sister. I need to know so that I can break his legs," Danny informed her and she rolled her eyes, pushing her hair behind her shoulders as she did so.

"We didn't," she promised him. "Nothing happened, Danny. You don't need to go into cop mode on him."

"Am I supposed to believe that?" Danny checked sceptically. "You spend the night with a guy and you expect me to believe that nothing happened?"

"You should do," she promised him. "It didn't. Seriously, Dan, I have to go. I'm fine and I'll see you tomorrow. Okay?"

"I'm still angry with you, Mads. As are mom and dad," he warned her and she sighed again.

"Yes, Danny," she said simply. "Just tell them that I crashed at Jonathan's. That's all that happened."

"I want to believe you, Mads. But I know what guys are like."

"Not Jonathan," Madison assured him. "Trust me, Dan. Please?"

"Fine," Danny agreed after a minute and Madison nodded.

"I'll see you later, Danny," Madison told him and she hung up, checking herself again in the mirror before she walked out into the living area, throwing her phone into her satchel and then moving back into the bedroom. Jonathan was still sleeping soundly and she tried not to disturb him as she climbed into the bed beside him.

...

Jonathan pushed himself out of his bed when he heard his alarm sound at six in the morning. He yawned once, sitting on the side of the bed and then stretching. He turned his head over his shoulder, looking at Madison as she slept. He smirked once, standing up and then walking into his living room and then into the kitchen. He pulled out a cereal bowl and looked at the spare one which he had. Slowly, he pulled it out and poured some cereal into it before milk splashed over it.

Jonathan grabbed two spoons, dumping them into the bowls and then he moved into his bedroom, depositing the bowl on the bedside table beside Madison.

"I heard your alarm," she mumbled to him, her eyes still shut and a hand stuffed under his pillow. Slowly, she peeled one eyelid open, looking up to him as he stood at the side of the bed. "I wondered if you'd want me gone early this morning."

"What would the neighbours say?" Jonathan joked with her gently. "No, don't think too poorly of me. I wouldn't throw you out, Madison."

"And I said that I didn't put out on the first date," Madison mumbled, pushing herself upwards and resting against the pillows she angled against the white wall.

"Technically you didn't," Jonathan replied, sitting at the end of the bed, angling the upper half of his body towards her as he did so.

"I feel like I did," Madison responded. "I'm in your bed and wearing your shirt."

"You are," Jonathan agreed. "But, nothing happened, did it?"

"No," she agreed with him. "I suppose not."

"Eat up," he spoke, motioning to the bowl on the side. He quickly stood up and she smiled widely at him.

"Thanks." She said sincerely. "Breakfast in bed. I feel honoured."

"You really shouldn't," Jonathan replied. "It is only soggy cereal."

"It's the thought that counts," Madison simply shrugged, crossing her legs and picking the bowl up whilst Jonathan moved out into his living room. He closed the bedroom door, still eating his cereal as he heard his cell begin to ring. He looked back to the bedroom before picking it up; making sure that she wasn't listening.

"Hello," Jonathan spoke down the phone.

"Yeah, Doctor Crane," the familiar sound of Falcone reached his ears and Jonathan rolled his eyes.

"Now isn't a good time," Jonathan snapped back at him and Falcone chuckled.

"I'll be the decider of that," Falcone spat out. "I need a favour from you for next week."

"What is it?" Jonathan snapped.

"My boy. David Meyer," Falcone sighed. "He found himself in a bit of bother with GPD. Anyway, long story short, he's being placed in front of a court next week. I'd hate for him to go to Blackgate."

"I bet you would," Jonathan mumbled. "I'll need to speak with this David Meyer."

"Yeah, yeah," Falcone mumbled. "Just do what you do best."

"Your thugs are of no importance to me, Mr Falcone. I hope you know that," Jonathan informed him, his voice coming out in a short hiss as he did so.

"And do you want anyone to know about that little shipment I'm bringing in for you?" Falcone snapped back. "Just do it, Doctor Crane. We have a deal?"

"Do I have a choice?" Jonathan mumbled back to Falcone and the man chuckled, knowing the question was rhetorical. It couldn't be anything other than that.

"Good option, Doctor Crane." Falcone said before he hung up. Jonathan did the same, throwing his phone onto his sofa before running his hands through his hair and then turning around on the spot.

"Falcone?"

His eyes widened in shock as he saw her stood in the doorway to his bedroom, his shirt still covering her body as she looked at him with hurt. She was supposed to be changing and eating. She couldn't have heard him from in there. He was being quiet.

"Were you eavesdropping?" he snapped at her and she glared at him.

"Were you talking to Carmine Falcone?"

"No."

"Liar."

"Well, why ask me when you know the answer?" Jonathan wondered.

"Rachel was right," Madison whispered. "You really are corrupt."

She turned back into the bedroom, grabbing her dress and throwing it over her arm before she picked up her shoes, slipping them onto her feet and he moved into the bedroom, rolling his eyes as he did so.

"Everyone in this city is corrupt," he informed her and she glared at him, still flouncing around the room and searching for her clothes, her stomach churning with sickness. She needed to get out.

"I didn't think you were...and you promised me...you stood in that courtroom and promised me!" Madison yelled at him and he grinned gently.

"I didn't promise to tell you the whole truth and nothing but the truth whilst I was in there, did I?" he replied and Madison glared at him quickly.

"How could you?"

"You don't know what's going on," Jonathan promised her. "I could explain if you just calm down."

"No!" Madison roared at him, moving over to the doorway, moving to the side to pass through it as her body pressed against his and she continued to throw daggers through her eyes at him. "I don't want to listen to you."

"So where are you going to go?" Jonathan asked her and she picked her bag up, placing her dress and tights over it as she swung it onto her shoulder and grabbed her coat. "You're going to go out in nothing but my shirt?"

"I can't stay here another minute." She said to him. "Who are you, Jonathan?"

"You don't want to know," he whispered so she couldn't hear as she moved to the door. Jonathan watched her open it quickly, running down the hallway and to the staircase. He quickly caught up with her, his apartment door wide open as he moved into the stairwell, reaching the first floor platform before he grabbed onto her wrist and quickly drew her back to him, slamming her body against the wall as she fought against him.

"Get off!" she yelled loudly.

"No," he snapped back. "You're being unreasonable. Come back and let me explain."

"What? You want me to give you the chance to lie to me again? I don't think so, Jonathan." She mumbled at him and he rolled his eyes, his arms still pinning her against the cold wall.

"You don't really get a say, Madison," he snapped at her and she saw something move into his eyes. A glimmer which showed something other than his normal self. The look on his face was savage and Madison stopped her worming about to simply look at him as he nodded at her. "That's better. It's much better when you don't fight me. Now, we're going to go back upstairs and I'm going to explain everything, do you understand me?"

"Fine," Madison said quickly, the tone of his voice worrying her slightly and he sighed to himself, letting her go but keeping a hand wrapped around her arm.

"You're so much better when you're compliant, Madison." Jonathan said and then he whispered under his voice. "He prefers this you."

...

A/N: Quite another long chapter for you! So, thank you to Teacup, Guest, Undertaker's Hattress and InLoveAndCrazy for reviewing the previous chapter.

Thank you to anyone reading and following.

Please, do review to let me know what you think, please?


	18. Chapter 18

"Sit down," Jonathan demanded from Madison, adjusting her arm in his hold and causing her to move her weight onto the sofa. Once she had fallen against the plush cushions she snatched her arm from his hold, glaring up at him as he locked his apartment door, resting his forehead against the wooden material as he did so and sighing once. What did he tell her? He had to work his way out of this mess somehow. He needed to keep her quiet and on his side.

"So what now?" Madison snapped at him, sitting forward and shrugging her shoulders roughly. Jonathan spun around, his blue eyes glaring over at her as he did so and he composed himself. He allowed his neck to move around in his hand before he slumped his shoulders and arched a brow at her.

"Well, you're going to sit here and listen to me," he informed her and Madison snorted, feeling like a child being berated by their teacher. His voice was full of authority, commanding her to do as he said. He took a seat on the leather chair adjacent to his sofa and he clasped his hands together, resting them in between his knees as he sat on the edge of the seat.

"And what makes you think that I'm going to believe you?" Madison wondered as he continued to stare intently at her. Surely giving her the toxin would make this easier. She didn't remember anything from the last time it happened. He could convince her that none of this had been real. But, moving into his bedroom to get it didn't seem like an option when she could easily run.

"Have I ever given you room to doubt me before?" Jonathan asked her. "You know me, Madison. I am nothing if not brutally honest."

"You lied to me the other day," Madison reminded him. "I asked if there was anything about Falcone-"

"-I could hardly say, could I?" Jonathan snapped back, pushing his hands through his thick, black hair. He forced his face to contain the smirk which wanted to form as he looked at her pleadingly, his orbs wide with longing. "Falcone wouldn't appreciate me speaking to DA's. I'd risk my life along with yours."

"Then explain," Madison extended her arm, giving him the floor. She leant back on the sofa, folding her arms and glaring at him whilst her chin moved an inch forwards from its normal position in that stubborn gesture she did. It drove Jonathan mad. "Go on, Jonathan, explain it to me."

"I shall," Jonathan spoke and gulped loudly. "Mr Falcone has been threatening me."

Madison listened to his words and looked at his face. He'd removed his glasses from his eyes, folding them up and dropping them into his pyjama pocket in his shirt whilst Madison remained mute. Something about Jonathan told her that he couldn't be threatened. He wasn't physically strong, but, he wasn't weak either. He seemed to intimidating.

"Ever since I became the head of Arkham favours have been requested from me off of him," Jonathan spoke slowly, thinking through each word as he said it. He knew that he couldn't afford any slip ups. The slightest one may give the game away. "I think he saw me as a young man. A young man who is easily manipulated. At first I stayed strong, but, he then began to look into my life a little closer."

"And you didn't think about going to the police?" Madison piped up and Jonathan allowed himself a knowing smirk in her direction, his head tilted to the side as he looked at her.

"You know that the police force _is _Falcone, Madison," Jonathan replied and she pursed her lips, looking away from him for a second as she knew he was right, she just didn't want to admit it to him. "Anyway, he asked me to transfer Matthew's from Blackgate to Arkham. I told him that I wouldn't. I said that it wasn't wise and that I had a reputation to upkeep. You can imagine how much he cared for that," Jonathan rolled his eyes sarcastically. "I had no choice when he gave me the ultimatum."

"Let me guess," Madison said, her tone sounding slight bored and unconcerned as she continued her scrutiny on the young doctor sat opposite her. "He told you that you would do it or he'd kill you and find someone more willing to do his dirty work?"

Jonathan remained silent, thinking through the lie which he had just told her and he shrugged one shoulder lightly, continuing to look at her as he did so. The next sentence which came out of his mouth had the potential to change the dynamic of their relationship. He knew that as soon as he thought of the lie. He just didn't intend on getting caught.

"Partly true," Jonathan informed her. "He knows about you, Madison."

Madison heard his words echo around in her ear as she unfolded her arms from her stomach and leant forwards, composing herself before she looked back at Jonathan who had dropped his head into his hands. He was either a very good faker or he was being deadly serious with her. Of course, Madison didn't see the former one as being an option.

"He told me that it wasn't my decision to make," Jonathan mumbled into his hands whilst Madison remained silent, her eyes tearing up as she looked at him. "He told me that he knew there were people I cared about."

"Jonathan," Madison sighed his name and he looked back across to her, seeing that her face had softened before she stood up and moved over to the chair he was sat in. Hesitantly, she sat herself down on the arm of it as he looked up to her.

"What would you have me do, Madison?" Jonathan asked her. "It isn't just my life at risk."

"You should still have gone to the police," she urged him. "You could have told me and I would have told my brother."

"What good what that do anyone?" Jonathan asked her. "Falcone would have found out and he'd kill both of us. I couldn't tell you. I couldn't tell anyone."

"We have to go to the police."

"No," Jonathan replied quickly and Madison looked at him, seeing something like fear rise into his eyes. She thought that he was scared for her life and his. But, he was scared that the police would come sniffing around Arkham. He didn't need them there. "We can't tell anyone, Madison. We'll both be dead if we did and you know that, don't you? That's why I had to be so forceful earlier. I had to stop you from going and telling anyone."

Madison remained silent, pushing a hand through her hair as she sighed once and shook her head. She knew that Jonathan was right. Of course she did. She would have been a fool to go running off to tell the police Falcone was blackmailing Jonathan. She wondered if she'd even make it out of the police station.

"This is messed up, Jonathan," Madison complained. "Surely we should do the right thing."

"The right thing would get us killed," he retorted with a snort, sitting back and placing his glasses back onto his eyes.

"But it would be the right thing," Madison replied and Jonathan shook his head.

"The way I look at it, it is irrelevant," Jonathan promised her. "His thugs are in Arkham. They're still locked away."

"Not in the right place," Madison deadpanned and Jonathan resisted the urge to roll his eyes at her. Why couldn't she leave it? Why couldn't she just be humbled that he had thought about her?

"They're still away from the public. They're somewhere where they can't hurt anyone and by doing this then I keep us safe," Jonathan reasoned with her. Slowly, he grabbed onto her wrist, pulling her down the arm of the chair so that she rested in his lap, his arm around her back as his other hand held onto hers. How hard was she making this for him? Hard enough that he had to attempt to be sentimental with her.

"I don't know what to do," Madison whispered.

"I know," Jonathan agreed, allowing her to rest her head against his shoulder. "This is why I didn't want you to find out, Madison. I wanted to keep you safe."

"You don't need to protect me," she spoke back.

"Even you need protection against a man like Carmine Falcone," Jonathan spoke back to her. "This really isn't a big deal. What I do isn't right...but...it's not horrific and it is keeping us safe."

"I know," Madison simply sighed. "I know."

Jonathan lapsed into silence after then, feeling her body relax against his as she closed her eyes and crave the warmth which he gave her. Only then could he safely allow a smile to grace his pale features, congratulating himself. He'd cracked her. She wouldn't tell anyone. The way she had stopped arguing told him that. Also, the way she held onto him like he was the last safe thing in the world told him that, too.

...

"You're late," Rachel declared when Madison rolled up to work at half past nine in the morning, half an hour after she was due. She took a seat in her chair and sat back, tucking her hair behind her ears as she began to look at the file which Rachel had given her. Her mentor looked up from her own work and allowed her eyebrows to knit together before her mouth hung open in horror.

"What?" Madison asked, trying to be nonchalant when she caught her staring.

"Is that the same dress as yesterday?" Rachel checked and Madison turned red but shrugged at her, looking back onto the file with fake interest. Rachel shook her head, sitting back and dropping her pen onto her desk. "It is, isn't it?"

"No," Madison denied.

"Liar." Rachel spoke back. "Your hair is crazier than normal, too."

"Hey!" Madison snapped at her and Rachel held her hands up in defence.

"It is," she replied. "You spent the night with Doctor Crane, didn't you?"

"Look, Rachel," Madison sighed, "it really is personal."

"I know that," Rachel snapped back. "I don't want to know if he is fantastic in bed. I just want to know if you're okay."

"I'm fine," Madison spoke quickly back to her. "And I just crashed at his place. He was a perfect gentleman and nothing happened."

"Crane?" Rachel arched a brow. "A perfect gentleman?"

"He was," Madison declared. "I know you're worried. I'm fine, honestly."

"I just don't want you to get hurt by him, Madison," Rachel said, picking her pen back up and Madison looked back onto her own work, muttering under her breath so that Rachel couldn't hear her;

"I can't promise that."

...

A/N: Such a good liar, isn't he? Anyway, thank you very much to Fangirl-Karla, ZabuzasGirl, Guest, daughterofapollo18, Undertaker's Hattress and Guest for reviewing. Let me know what you think and more later on!


	19. Chapter 19

Madison sat in the public gallery as Jonathan took to the stand, telling the court of his expert opinion on the mental health of David Meyer. Madison remained silent as Rachel was the one to question him, making sure that she didn't go easy on him as her intern remained a mute in the gallery, her eyes never leaving Jonathan. She knew that he was lying. She knew that she was as bad as he was. She was sat there, not saying anything of what Falcone had threatened to her and Jonathan if he told the truth. But, she didn't get up and shout it out. She didn't make a grand, sweeping gesture to the front of the room and demand to take to the stand. No, she just sat there and watched Rachel try and take Jonathan's opinion down.

"That's all for now, Doctor Crane," Rachel dismissed him curtly and he nodded, moving away from the dock and over to the gallery, looking down the row of seats on the third line to where Madison sat. He quietly moved down them to the middle, taking a seat next to her as she looked up to him and he looked back down at her. He'd been thankful that she had agreed to keep his secret quiet. Well, it wasn't a secret, more like a lie. People muttered as a short break was taken for the defence to put forward their argument and Jonathan smiled lightly.

"Are you okay?" he checked with Madison.

"This is wrong," she whispered lightly and he resisted the need to roll his eyes at her comment. How many times had she declared that something had been wrong to him? It was every two minutes. Every time he thanked for being quiet she insisted that she was something bad.

"We'll get through this," Jonathan whispered, his voice light as he did so. The judge slammed the gavel and then everyone remained silent, reporters stopped comparing notes, people stopped comparing ideas and the hidden men of Falcone's thugs moved from the courtroom, seeing what they had needed from Crane.

As the defence attorney stood, Jonathan looked down to where Madison's hand sat on the side of her chair as if she was clinging onto it and he dropped his own hand, his fingers lightly brushing against hers as his eyes went back to the scene in front of him and Madison moved her hands, still watching Meyer in the stand as she moved her hand upwards to lace Jonathan's fingers into hers. She moved her body closer to him, hiding their entwined hands as neither of them looked at each other, not wanting to draw attention to themselves.

...

"That's the second member of the mob who he has had moved to his Asylum and declared insane," Rachel spat out as she stormed around her office and Madison remained seated on the leather chair, spooning her yoghurt into her mouth as her eyes remained downcast onto the piece of paper in front of her. She bit the inside of her cheek, knowing that it would be the only way to keep her quiet. She longed to tell Rachel of what had been happening. She just knew that it wouldn't be practical.

"I mean, how many more is there going to be?" Rachel snapped; slamming the drawer to her desk shut before she sat in her chair, her hands moving through her hair in a stressed motion. "Before he came along and became head psychiatrist, there was nothing. None of Falcone's thugs would even be considered to be moved into Arkham. What changed?"

"He might be insane?" Madison suggested timidly and Rachel cocked her head in her direction, a brow moved halfway up her forehead whilst she looked at her intern without conviction. "We don't know, do we? We just do our jobs. At the end of the day, it is the judge who rules whether or not they go to Arkham."

"The judge is as corrupt as Crane," Rachel spat out and Madison felt her cheek begin to swell between her teeth as she narrowed her eyes down at her work. If only Rachel knew what Jonathan was really doing. Madison shook her head and sighed.

"Well, we have a week until Zsasz is on trial," Madison sighed and shook her head. "That should be a fun one."

"He butchered for the mob like the other two," Rachel shook her head. "Do you think your little boyfriend is going to have anything to do with that?"

"He's not my boyfriend," was the only comeback which Madison could manage to spit out. Rachel allowed a small shake of her head along with a look of disappointment which annoyed Madison. "He's not, Rachel. I don't know what we are."

"I saw you two in the entrance hall, Madison," Rachel deadpanned with her. "You had your arms around him whilst he stroked your hair. You two are clearly an item."

"Well he hasn't said anything," Madison muttered.

"Is there even any point in me telling you to be careful?"

"Not much."

...

"Mom and Dad said I'm to keep watch on you this evening," Danny informed his baby sister as she sat in the living room and held the remote in her hand, flicking through TV stations in a feeble attempt to find something intriguing to watch. She'd changed out of her work clothes and into her gym sweats with the full intention of going there. But, she'd managed to make it to the sofa and the most exercise she had done in the past hour was flip the remote button.

"I'm twenty two," Madison protested loudly. "I'm an adult. I can do what I want."

"No, you can't," Danny denied, sitting on the armchair along with his paper. "Mom and Dad said, and I quote; 'as long as she lives in this house then she abides by our rules which do not include sneaking out and spending the night at random men's houses.'"

"What?" Madison snapped. "Firstly, he's not a random man, he is Doctor Crane. You've met him! And secondly, he doesn't have a house, he has an apartment."

"Whoa," Danny rolled his eyes. "All that detail must make it so much better."

"Shut up," Madison protested. "Besides, I just stayed the night on the sofa," she lied. Technically, it didn't matter. "Where are Mom and Dad, anyway?"

"Aunty Mandy invited them for dinner. I could swear they get out more than you used to during your college years."

"Ha bloody ha," Madison mumbled; dropping the remote onto her curled up knee.

"So what is going on with you this doctor or yours?" Danny enquired and Madison shrugged, pretending to be more interested in the TV than in the question which her brother had just asked her.

"I don't know," she admitted and Danny shook his head.

"Just tell me that you're not friends with benefits. I don't-"

"-Danny!" Madison snapped at him, rolling her eyes and turning her head, looking horrified at him as she did so.

"What?" he asked. "It's all what our generation is about."

"It really isn't," Madison shook her head. "Do you know how old you just sounded? Our generation? I mean...you're turning into dad."

"Am not," Danny replied. "Besides, I'm just looking out for you. I don't want him to mess you about, Mads."

"He's not," Madison promised him, not sounding entirely convinced with herself.

...

Madison sat down opposite Jonathan at his dining table the next night, looking over the file which Rachel had given her whilst Jonathan read through his own notes. The pair of them had a glass of water each and they were silent, more interested on their work then on each other. Jonathan had found that he had to keep Madison around more often than he had planned. He had to make sure that she didn't go running off to the police to tell them of his lie. But, there was something else.

Some part of him deep down knew that he liked to keep her around him. He often found himself looking up from his work and just staring at her, watching as she intently wrote and then scribbled out what she had put. He noted how she tucked her hair behind her ear and bit down on her lip when she was focused. He'd found himself slightly attached to her and that worried him slightly. He'd never been emotionally close to anyone or even cared about anyone. Madison was slowly becoming different.

He most certainly didn't love her, he knew that much. He'd read about the symptoms of love and they sounded similar to carbon monoxide poisoning to him. He wasn't in love. He wouldn't take a bullet for her. He wouldn't risk his life for her. He knew that much.

"What's going on?" Madison suddenly asked, dropping her pen onto the table and Jonathan looked up, pushing his glasses further onto his nose as he did so. His eyes found hers as she remained silent and looked at him.

"What do you mean?" he asked. "I'm looking through my case notes and you are doing the same. I don't see anything happening which shouldn't be."

"I meant about us," Madison frowned. "I mean...we've gone behind friends, haven't we?"

"I don't know," Jonathan replied, continuing to look at her with certain interest. He knew what she wanted. She wanted to label their relationship. He wasn't particularly interested in anything like that. He only wanted change when it suited him. But, he supposed it would keep Madison happy.

"I think we have," Madison informed him, taking the lead. "Look, I'm happy if you don't want anything to happen between us. I mean...you're dedicated to work and so am I...and if you want to see other people-"

"-I think we both know that I don't have that issue," Jonathan snorted as he looked at Madison and she remained quiet. "Unless you want to meet other people?"

"No," Madison replied softly. "I don't want anyone else."

"Well then, I suppose it is logical, isn't it?" Jonathan shrugged nonchalantly at her. "If we have gone beyond friends and we don't want to see anyone else then we have to be an exclusive item, do we not?"

"No," Madison shook her head at him. "We don't have to be that if you don't want to be that."

"Why would you think that?"

"You don't sound enthralled," Madison said lightly.

"Neither do you," Jonathan pointed out and Madison smirked at hearing that.

"Fair point," Madison smiled gently. "It's what I want, Jonathan. I don't want to date anyone else...I enjoy spending time with you...and...I like you..."

"That's settled then," Jonathan spoke firmly, his plump lips moving up and smiling at Madison as he did so. "Now, do you feel like eating?"

Madison nodded once and Jonathan stood up, stalking through his kitchen for food and closing the file quickly, knowing that Madison would look at its title. She did so without disappointment, glancing at the title on it and she felt her chest clench and her stomach churn at the name on it.

Victor Zsasz.

...

A/N: Getting closer to Batman Begins now! Thank you to Fangirl-Karla, Guest, Teacupful and reverie-scriptor for reviewing the previous chapter!

Please, do let me know what you think so far! Hope it's going okay!


	20. Chapter 20

"No," Madison giggled as she and Jonathan sat in the diner during their lunch break the next day as Jonathan sat opposite her, smirking to himself as she held the straw to her milkshake in her hands, chewing on it gently as she looked at Jonathan who shrugged lightly at her. "I've never played that game before."

"I thought that you would have," Jonathan commented, placing his glasses further onto his nose as he did so and Madison continued to watch him. She picked up the large glass which contained her strawberry flavoured milkshake and she continued to think back. "It was very popular with the popular kids when I was in college."

"You went to college a few years before me," Madison informed him. "Anyway, what made you decide on a dinner date?"

"I was bored at work," Jonathan commented with a nonchalant shrug. It wasn't a total lie to her. He had been known to tell the truth every now and then, when it suited his plans. He remained silent for a second, watching as she picked up a French Fry and popped it into her mouth. He didn't eat that much. He occasionally sipped on his coffee in front of him, but, he tended to just sit and watch her with intrigue. "No one has decided to slit their wrists."

"Jonathan," she rolled her eyes and he chuckled, looking at her with a grin and another shrug of his shoulders. "Seriously, you don't really want anyone to be slitting their wrists, do you?"

"It would make my job more interesting," he assured her. "But, it did give me a chance to write my notes on the Zsasz case."

Madison pursed her lips as she heard that from him and she shook her head, tucking her hair behind her ears as she did so.

"He's asked you to do it, hasn't he?" Madison checked and Jonathan looked at her for a second, his eyes searching hers as he wondered what he should tell her about the Zsasz case. He did allow himself to nod once at her and she sighed lightly. "Jonathan, how long do we need to do this for?"

"Not much longer," Jonathan promised her. "I can assure you of that."

...

"In my opinion, Mr Zsasz is a danger to himself as well as to other. Prison would not necessarily be the best option for him."

His rich voice moved through the court and Madison bit down on her bottom lip as she heard him say that. She shook her head once and looked across to where Rachel was sat, her eyes glowering in Crane's direction as he continued to speak about Zsasz, his expert opinion being taken seriously until the judge ruled that Arkham would be the best place for him. Rachel slammed the file shut and held it tightly in her hands as Jonathan swept past them, a brief glance in Madison's direction as he did so.

"Your boyfriend isn't right," Rachel informed Madison and the younger girl followed her mentor to the exit as she shook her head. "He's working with Falcone or he's been bought."

"He hasn't," Madison spat out, not allowing her to talk about Jonathan in that manner. Rachel turned around, looking at her intently as she did so and the two women stood in the hallway for a moment or two. "He's not doing anything wrong."

"How can you say that?" Rachel asked from her. "Do you know something about him?"

"No," Madison lied. "I just know that he isn't as bad as you make out. He's my boyfriend, Rachel. I know him."

"You've known him for a few weeks," Rachel rolled her eyes. "You can't tell me that you know everything about him"

"I know enough," Madison responded. "Just leave him be, Rachel."

"Doctor Crane!" Rachel called out, clearly ignoring Madison as she rushed through the double doors and caught up with the Doctor who turned around after a groan from his lips. He watched as Madison followed Rachel and looked at Jonathan with an apologetic glance as his eyes landed onto the elder DA.

"Ah, Miss Dawes."

"Do you know that this is the third of Carmine Falcone's thugs that you've had declared insane?" Rachel checked and he nodded once at her.

"Well, organised crime must have an attraction for the criminally insane," Jonathan responded to her and turned back around, walking to the exit as Rachel called after him.

"Or the corrupt," she replied and Madison shook her head, her hands clenching into fists by her sides as she did so. If only she could tell Rachel what he was doing to protect them. She might stay off their back or she might go completely mental. Madison thought about it and the latter seemed to be the only option which she could comprehend.

"Mr Finch," Jonathan suddenly shouted. "You may want to inform Miss Dawes here what implications your office is allowed to make. If any."

Carl looked back as Jonathan flounced off and he began to walk over to Rachel whilst Madison moved past her bosses and followed Jonathan to the exit. She stood on the steps to City Hall, looking around to see what direction he went in, but, she didn't need to look far.

"I knew you'd follow me out," Jonathan chuckled when he saw her walk past him. She turned around as he leant against the wall next to the door, his briefcase by his side as his eyes glittered lightly and looked into hers.

"I wanted to make sure that you were okay," Madison said, moving across to him and folding her arms in the chilly air and he shrugged breezily, his eyes looking over her head and at the commotion which was going on around them. "Rachel wouldn't be so harsh if she knew what was happening."

"Miss Dawes is the least of my worries," Jonathan promised her. "She doesn't bother me at all."

"Well...it bothers me...I have to spend my days listening to how she thinks you're bad and working with Falcone."

"You won't tell her anything, will you?" Jonathan checked with her and Madison shook her head at him.

"No," she assured him. "I won't tell her anything. You can't keep going though with this, Jonathan. She's sniffing around and your reputation may not survive this."

"You're worried for me," Jonathan commented once and Madison rolled her eyes at him, grinning at him as she did so and he looked at her with intrigue. He'd never seen anyone concerned about him before. It was a strange feeling which he was getting at the thought.

"Of course I am," she responded. "You should know that I care about you."

"I'll be fine," Jonathan mumbled, moving his hand out and grabbing onto her left one, his fingers moving into hers as he did so. He didn't need Madison worrying about him. He had a plan of how to get Rachel out of the picture.

"Okay," Madison said, not entirely convinced. "Look, I'd best get back to work. I'll see you later tonight?"

"Yes," he confirmed. "I'll be finished at work by seven. You can come round any time after."

"Fine," Madison agreed, moving forward and pecking him on the cheek swiftly. "I'll see you later."

...

"There's a girl sniffing around in the DA's office," Jonathan spoke softly as he sat opposite Falcone, looking at the mob boss without feeling any fear. Most people would be worried. Most people would run away at the sight of the mob boss. But, Jonathan had a trick or two up his sleeve. Quite literally speaking, of course. "I can't do you any more favours."

"That's not the way it is doc," Falcone shook his head. "You scratch my back and I scratch your back."

"We're paying you for the shipments." Jonathan replied, slightly confused as he did so and Falcone arched an eyebrow and cocked his head to the side gently.

"Who said that money interests me as much as favours?" Falcone wondered aloud and Jonathan sighed, rubbing the lens of his glasses on the edge of his jacket as he did so.

"I'm well aware that I don't intimidate you, Mr Falcone. But, when he gets here-"

"-Here?" Falcone interrupted. "As in he's coming to Gotham?"

"He is," Jonathan said, slightly giddy as he did so. "And when he gets here then he won't be happy to learn that you haven't been cooperating."

"Pay her off," Falcone said simply and Jonathan shook his head.

"Not this one," he replied.

"An idealist, huh? There's an answer to that, too."

"I don't want to know," Jonathan mumbled and Falcone chuckled.

"I think you do."

...

Madison was early to Jonathan's apartment that night. She'd dropped her car back off at home after Danny had complained that his wasn't running right and he needed a car for getting to his friends on the other side of town. Madison had complained but he'd agreed to do the dishes for an entire month. He had commented how he did them anyway seeing as she was always at Jonathan's.

She got the bus to his apartment, climbing off it and walking around the rest of the block. She looked behind her as another man climbed off, his eyes fixed anywhere but on her as she pulled her bag further onto her shoulder and continued walking quickly. She knew that she was probably overreacting, but, she got the chills from having someone follow her down the sidewalk.

She took the turn left onto Jonathan's street and looked behind her again, seeing that he was still there, his hand tucked in his pocket as Madison began to pick up the pace into a somewhat jog. But, he knew what she was doing. He quickly rushed forwards and grabbed her wrist, twirling her to face him as she struggled to snap out of his hold.

"Get off!" Madison barked at him.

"No can do, honey," he replied.

Madison acted quickly before he could pull anything from his pocket and she quickly spat in his face, taking him off guard as she snatched her wrist from his hold and began to run down the sidewalk. She looked behind her, barely noticing how she bumped into a tall and lanky figure.

"Madison?" his voice checked with her as the man managed to catch up with her, standing a few feet away from the couple as Jonathan wrapped his arm around her waist and looked at the man who had wide eyes and a small grin on his face as he did so. Jonathan continued to glare at him before he spoke lightly and dangerously;

"You'd best leave," he said quietly and the man raised his hands into the air, unable to wait to tell Falcone what he had just seen.

Madison remained huddled into Jonathan as his arm stayed securely around her and he looked down at her.

"Are you okay?" he checked and she nodded once, gulping as she did so and Jonathan turned them around, his hands running up and down the small of her back as they moved into the apartment building.

"I'm okay," she assured him. "Just a bit shocked. I didn't expect to almost be mugged."

"No," Jonathan agreed with her. "I'm just thankful that you're okay and I got to you in time."

"So am I," Madison said as he unlocked the door to the apartment and allowed her in, making her sit on the sofa as he grabbed out another wine glass and filled it up for her. She took it and sipped quickly, wishing that her shoulders would stop shaking as Jonathan sat beside her on the sofa.

"Everything's okay," he promised her. "You're safe now and I'm here."

"I know," Madison said, forcing herself to smile up at him as he wrapped his arm around her shoulders and she leaned closer to him. He stiffened slightly at the contact but relaxed after a moment and smiled back at her. "I'm just doing that thing where you think 'what if', you know?"

"I suppose," Jonathan admitted. "Anyway, it is over with now."

...

"I told you that I was having problems with a DA. Not her intern," Jonathan drawled out as soon as he saw Falcone the next day. He'd dropped Madison off at work and told her that he would pick her up before he headed off to see Falcone. The mob boss rolled his eyes gently, folding his paper in half and resting it onto his desk before he looked at Jonathan with a small grin. "I never told you to go after her intern."

"I deduced that she would be a part of your problem seeing as she is working with Miss Dawes," Falcone informed Jonathan. "Besides, Miss Dawes will be taken care of tonight. My boy went to deal with the least important intern first. All you had to do was be more specific, Doctor Crane. We had no idea that you were sleeping with her."

"Irrelevant," Jonathan hissed. "You'll stay away from her, do you understand me?"

"Is that a threat?" Falcone asked; sounding slight amused as he heard it and Jonathan glared at him through his glasses and shrugged once.

"Leave her alone," he concluded. "She's not your business."

"I can't believe my boys didn't find out you'd been banging her before," Falcone chuckled. "I don't go into business with someone who I don't know."

"Well, I'm very discreet," Jonathan replied and stood up, picking his briefcase up quickly as he did so.

"That you are," Falcone admitted. "Don't worry, the DA will be taken care of now that your complaint has been heard."

"Wonderful," Jonathan said with sarcasm before he left the office.

...

Jonathan sat in his car outside of Arkham, looking into the mirror which hung on his sun screen whilst he thought about what he had just done. He'd just gone to protect Madison. He'd gone to the mob boss of Gotham and told him to leave her alone. Even he wasn't blind enough to see that meant something.

_She's getting to you. I warned you that this would happen._

"Shut up," Jonathan mumbled. "I owe her that much for keeping my little lie, don't I?"

_And what happens when Gotham goes up into smoke? What happens when our little plan comes through? She's going to find out that you've been lying to her soon enough._

"She doesn't have to," Jonathan said with determination. "She'll never find out. I can keep it from her."

_And when she finds out what you did? When she sees that you caused Gotham to be held to ransom, then what is your plan?_

"I'll keep her safe when that happens. As I said, I owe her that much. She won't stop me from doing this and I don't care what she thinks about it."

_We both know that she will think you're crazy. Come along, Jonathan. We know she is the pinnacle of good. She'll never see you in the same light. Do you want that?_

"You've never cared about what she thought before," Jonathan mumbled and the voice chuckled.

_I'm just making sure that you're going to be okay with it. I'd hate to have to tell you 'I told you so'._

"We both know that is your favourite phrase."

_As it is yours._

"I suppose we do share some similar traits."

_Perhaps. Your caring for Miss Walters is not one of them._

"I'm aware," Jonathan mumbled, realising that it was the first time he hadn't denied that he cared for her.

...

A/N: Heating up now! More to come late, in the meantime, thank you to Fangirl-Karla, daughterofapollo18, Noniona, Guest and ZabuzasGirl for reviewing.

Do let me know what you think, please?


	21. Chapter 21

"You look tired," Jonathan commented when he saw Madison that evening. He'd been standing outside of City Hall for five minutes, waiting for her to leave work before she came back to his for the evening. He didn't know why he insisted on her coming around so often. He found it slightly soothing to have someone in the same room as him to talk to. Madison yawned once, wrapping her arm into his and he didn't push her away.

"I am," Madison admitted to him. "I haven't stopped all day, Jonathan. I've been rushing between court and the police station and then trying to make notes."

"Well, I've got the cure for tiredness," Jonathan replied as Madison leant against him, her head resting on his shoulder as she heard her name suddenly being called. She stopped walking and turned her head around, seeing Rachel rushing to her side. Her eyes narrowed as she saw Crane's and Madison's arms entwined, but, she remained silent.

"I thought I'd missed you," Rachel declared, sounding as if she was panting and Madison shook her head back at her.

"Jonathan and I were just going. What's up?" Madison asked and Crane continued to glare at Rachel who was doing her best to ignore his cold ice blue eyes.

"It's about tomorrow. I was going to ask if you could go down to the police station to collect the forms which they owe us." Rachel wondered and Madison gritted her teeth. That was another trip out of her way and it was another cab ride. She cursed Danny in her head silently for stealing her car before Jonathan looked at her.

"I'll take you before work and then drop you off here," he spoke quietly to her and she smiled and nodded at him.

"Thanks," she whispered and Rachel remained quiet. "I'll get them, Rachel."

"Thanks," Rachel said lightly. "So, I'll see you tomorrow."

"Okay," Madison smiled and began to walk back away with Jonathan as Rachel made the stern nodding motion at her, indicating for her to be careful. Jonathan pursed his lips, thinking about how that could be the last time that Madison saw Rachel. But, he didn't dwell upon it. He opened the door to his car for Madison and she climbed in, settling back and yawning once again.

"So, what is your cure for tiredness?" Madison wondered, glancing in Jonathan's direction as he looked over his shoulder and began to reverse out from the parking space he was in. He chuckled once and then focused back on the front window.

"A nice glass of wine and my cooking," Jonathan replied and Madison's mouth fell open slightly as she heard that.

"You're going to cook?" Madison checked. "Are you trying to kill me?"

"Oh, very droll," Jonathan rolled his eyes, indicating to turn left whist Madison remained smirking, thinking back onto how she came to met the man she was sat next to. It all seemed surreal to her. They had hated each other, but now they were inseparable. Madison didn't know how it had happened.

"My cooking isn't that bad," Jonathan assured her. "Just because I don't spend my days off making pastries doesn't mean that I can't cook."

"Cheese on toast doesn't count, Jonathan," Madison replied to him and his plump lips moved upwards as he heard her and he shook his head from side to side gently.

"I don't know what you're talking about," he denied.

Madison remained silent, silently taunting him as he pulled into his apartment building's car park and she followed him up the steps to his apartment and settled down on the sofa once she was inside. They spent the evening in each other's company, silent and pensive as Madison finished off her notes and looked at what cases were coming up. Jonathan concentrated on his cooking; making sure that it wasn't that bad so that she couldn't taunt him about it. Madison had to give it to him that his spaghetti Bolognese did turn out quite well.

"I'll wash up," she assured him, standing up and placing their dishes into the washing bowl, beginning to rinse them whilst Jonathan remained sat down and drinking his wine, watching as Madison did the mediocre task of washing the pots.

"I should keep you around more often if you insist on cleaning the pots," Jonathan joked, sipping on some more of his wine whilst Madison dropped a hand to her hip and turned back to look at him with an arched brow.

"I wouldn't get used to it," she warned him. "I get tired enough of doing it at home."

"That place which you haven't been to in the past week?" Jonathan checked with her and she sighed once, placing the plates back into the cupboard.

"I went the other day," Madison protested.

"You stopped for half an hour," Jonathan reminded her and she shrugged once.

"Mom and Dad don't mind," Madison spoke lightly. "Danny is convinced that I shouldn't even stay over. He thinks that I shouldn't date until a marriage proposal comes my way."

"Overprotective then?" Jonathan grinned as he placed his glass back onto his table. Madison didn't answer the rhetorical question but simply remained quiet.

"My mom is convinced that she should meet you," Madison spoke to him and his eyes widened and he looked slightly shocked at hearing that. He coughed once and looked at her again and she smiled as she noted the look of fear on his face. "Are you scared about meeting my parents?"

"No," he lied. He didn't do social events well. "I'm sure they're as lovely as you."

"Oh God," Madison said, finishing off her tidying. "Was that flattery?"

"No," he chuckled. "When have I ever said anything flattering?"

"Never, actually," she replied and she rolled her eyes at him, bending down to kiss him on the cheek before she walked out to the living room and picked up her notes. "How is the business with Falcone going?"

"He hasn't called me recently so that's a good sign," Jonathan sighed, slightly agitated that she would bring him up. He stood up and moved over to where she stood before he sat down on the sofa and closed his eyes, pinching the bridge of his nose as he did so. "I'm hoping that there won't be anything else."

"And if there is?" Madison wondered and Jonathan looked at her before shrugging.

"We keep on lying, Madison," Jonathan warned her. "We can't let anyone know."

"Fine," Madison shook her head, not liking to lie to him about how she felt. Jonathan picked up the remote to his TV and Madison sat by his side, moving closer to him as she curled her feet up from the floor.

"You do know what is on TV?" Madison pouted, looking up to him with pleading as he raised a brow.

"Enlighten me," he said, not sounding like he wanted to be enlightened whilst Madison batted her eyelashes in his direction.

"America's Next Top Model."

"Absolutely not," Jonathan spoke quickly back and Madison huffed, slowly placing her lips onto his neck above where the collar of his shirt was as he shivered once and closed his eyes, leaving a news channel to blurt something out as she built her way up his pale skin and to his jaw line.

"Are you trying to seduce me to get your own way?" Jonathan wondered from her and she smiled as her lips moved onto his. She pulled away for a second, her eyes gleaming into his as she did so and she felt his hands move onto her hips, bringing her to settle on his lap as she kissed his cheek.

"Is it working?" she wondered and he rolled his eyes, removing his glasses and dropping them to his side.

"Not one bit," he teased her, moving his own lips down onto the side of her neck. "You know that if we continue this then you're going to miss your programme and I'm not going to keep you on this sofa."

Madison looked up for a moment and into his eyes as he looked back at her, all seriousness found in them as she gulped once and nodded at him, realising what he meant as he backed her up against the arm of the sofa, the pair of them missing the breaking story of the arrest of Carmine Falcone.

...

Jonathan awoke in the middle of the night to a silence. Nothing was making a sound apart from Madison and her light breathing. He slowly propped himself up onto his side, looking down at her as he did so and she slept gently, her hand stuffed under his pillow and her other one messily curled under her chin. She was facing his way, her body covered in just his white sheet before he pushed a hand through his hair, thinking about their earlier escapades.

_Sleeping with her? Wise move, Jonathan._

Jonathan ignored the voice in his head for a moment, telling it to leave him alone and go away. He wanted to enjoy the silence which he had. He wanted to enjoy looking at Madison, knowing that she had given herself to him willingly.

_Now she's going to be even more attached to you. Is that what you need? Do you need her hanging around whilst your plan is put into action?_

"Shut up," Jonathan grumbled, eliciting a stir from Madison as she turned onto her other side. He hastily slid into his pyjamas and moved out into the living room, realising the voice wouldn't leave him alone as he sat down on the sofa and began to read through a Psychology book he'd read multiple times.

_What's happened to you? You've turned soft. It's becoming boring._

"I have not," Jonathan denied. "I simply enjoy spending time with Madison. Is that such a crime?"

_It is for you. Before you know it there will be marriage and babies on the cards._

"Behave," Jonathan rolled his eyes, flicking his page. "I don't love her. There is a difference between love and enjoying one's company."

_There's a fine line which I can't help but think that you may be crossing._

"The line may be fine." Jonathan declared. "But I am miles away from it."

...

"How long have you been awake?" Madison wondered as she moved out from Jonathan's bedroom. She'd changed into her red dress and was carrying her black heels on the edge of her fingertips. She arched a brow at Jonathan who was sat at his small kitchen table with a cup of coffee in front of him and a plate of toast.

"A while," Jonathan admitted. He'd changed into his white pinstriped shirt along with his brown sweater vest. His jacket sat on the back of his chair and his hair was still slightly damp from the shower which he'd had. "I woke up and couldn't get back to sleep."

"I never heard you," Madison informed him, sitting opposite him and slipping her feet into her shoes before she folded her legs and picked up a slice of toast, slowly placing it into her mouth whilst Jonathan shrugged, straightening out his tie as he did so.

"I didn't want to wake you. I thought that you may be tired after the previous excursions of last night," Jonathan said and Madison grinned once, blushing as she looked down onto her toast and Jonathan stood up, fetching a glass of orange juice for her. She allowed herself to follow him moving around the kitchen.

"I was," she admitted to him. "You don't regret it, do you?"

"Why would you ask me that?" Jonathan wondered, smirking at the closed cabinet door as he poured the liquid into the glass.

"I just want to make sure that you don't." Madison shrugged. "I mean, I don't."

"Good," Jonathan replied, turning around and placing the glass on the table before sitting down. "I don't. In fact, if it got me out of watching that mediocre programme then it was the best decision of the evening," he joked with her and she kicked him lightly under the table before listening to the noises of his chuckles echo around her.

...

Jonathan was true to his word. He sat outside the police station and waited for Madison to come back out with the folder which she had been picking up. He tapped his fingers against the wheel methodically before he saw her rushing out, holding the folder to her chest as she moved along in her ridiculously high heels.

"You would never guess who is in there," Madison quickly informed Jonathan who arched a brow.

"Considering there are many people who could be in there, I don't know," Jonathan replied dryly and Madison dropped the file into her lap.

"Carmine Falcone," she said quickly. "Apparently some masked bat creature captured him and all of his men last night whilst there was a drug shipment."

Jonathan remained calm at hearing that, knowing that nothing good could come of Carmine Falcone being arrested. But, he just kept telling himself that Falcone knew nothing. And what he didn't know couldn't hurt him.

"Really?" Jonathan asked and Madison nodded at him.

"I know that it sounds completely ludicrous, but, it is all the officers are talking about. It's good though, isn't it Jonathan? He can't blackmail you anymore, can he?"

"Do you think that bars would stop a man like Falcone?" he checked and Madison pursed her lips. Her optimistic mood was always dampened by his pessimistic one.

"I don't know," Madison admitted. "It's a start though, Jonathan. He's locked away. Surely some good will come of this."

"Perhaps," Jonathan simply spoke back. "Perhaps."

...

"You saw the bat creature?" Madison spat out as soon as Rachel told her and she had to stop herself from spitting out her water which she was in the process of drinking.

"Yes," she nodded. "He was right in front of me and he gave me the photos for leverage on Faden."

"What are we going to do?" Madison wondered and Rachel looked at her and noted that she seemed slightly giddy.

"We're going to prosecute," Rachel assured her. "I need you to be looking at everything in Faden's history and I'm dealing with Falcone. We take the case to court tomorrow. Don't worry, everything will be fine. No members of the mob will try to stop us now we have what we need."

"I wasn't worried," Madison assured her. "I know how dangerous this job can be sometimes."

"Good," Rachel said lightly. "Because I was almost mugged last night and I have no idea why."

"You were?" Madison asked and Rachel nodded. She didn't look too shook up from it. "That's weird."

"Why?" Rachel wondered.

"I was almost mugged the other night on the way to Jonathan's...but...well...Jonathan got to me in time before they could actually do anything."

"You didn't say."

"Nothing really happened. Coincidental though, isn't it?" Madison said lightly and Rachel nodded.

"In a city with a crime rate as high as this then it's possible," Rachel finally declared. "Right, we should be getting to work then."

...

"What do you want?" Jonathan asked as soon as he saw her Carmine Falcone locked away in an interview cell. The mob boss looked at Crane as he took a seat, placing his briefcase down onto the tale.

"Well, the walls are closing in Doc." Falcone rolled his eyes. "I think that I may be going crazy."

"Really?" Jonathan said and sighed, looking at Falcone as he did so.

"Yeah," he replied to him. "You see, I want a transfer in exchange for me keeping my mouth shut."

"Why would I do that?" Jonathan asked, his lips turned up on one side in a sneer. "You don't know anything."

"I know more than you think," Falcone assured him. "Like, I know that your shipment heads into the Narrows every week. I know about your little experiments on the inmates at Arkham. I know where my boy is hiding your girlfriend as we speak."

Jonathan remained mute, trying not to let his face show any sign of emotion as he took in what Falcone had just said and the drug boss chuckled to himself.

"I don't go into business without knowing guys dirty secrets," he assured him.

"Where is Madison?" Jonathan asked; his voice calm and even.

"She's fine," Falcone waved it off. "She's at your apartment and waiting for the call from me to say that I'm being transferred when they allow me my phone call. So, I am under the illusion that we have a deal."

"Are you?" Jonathan checked and removed his glasses from his eyes as he smirked once at hearing that. His hands moved onto his glasses and he pulled them from his eyes, folding them up and placing them into his pocket as he did so. Falcone watched him with intrigue as he popped the lock on his case. "You see, you've just told me where she is. That wasn't wise."

"And I also said that she wouldn't be released until I give the phone call. They'll shoot her straight away if you try anything," Falcone warned him and Jonathan shook his head.

"I have one trick though, Mr Falcone," Jonathan smirked and opened his case, pulling out the burlap mask as he did so, looking at it with longing. "They may want to see my mask."

"What is this?" Falcone spat. "Since when did the nut take over the nuthouse?"

"Oh, I'm not one of the crazies," Jonathan said lightly. "I'm simply the Scarecrow."

"Jesus, you are crazy," Falcone replied and Jonathan placed the mask onto his face, quickly pressing the button as the gas clouded through the room and Falcone began to shout and scream and Jonathan laughed lightly at the effects.

...

A/N: So, another chapter out and maybe another one later on today depending on time. So, I thank LittleLottie187, Guest, Indigo Scrawl, Fangirl-Karla and InLoveAndCrazy for reviewing the previous chapter. Please do let me know what you think so far, pretty please?


	22. Chapter 22

Jonathan sighed to himself as he held his briefcase close to his side, his blood pounding into his ears as he took the steps up to his apartment. He didn't know what he was going to do when he got there. Falcone had informed him that there was someone waiting in there with Madison. He didn't know whether or not to believe him, but, he had no reason to think he was lying, especially when Madison didn't pick up her phone after the seventh ring.

Jonathan pulled his keys from his jacket pocket and placed them into the lock, slowly turning it to open. His apartment looked normal as he stepped into it, fiddling with the gas source which was tucked up his sleeve. He didn't intend on letting anyone get under his skin. And then he saw the man sat on his sofa, reading through one of his Psychology book. He hadn't even noticed him walk in. Falcone needed to employ some better henchmen.

"And what are you doing here?" Jonathan asked; his voice low and controlling. The man jumped up from the seat, pulling his gun out from his pocket and pointing it at Jonathan as he did so. "Surely you know how stupid it was for you to come here; don't you?"

"Boss said it was necessary for me to be here," he spoke, the gum moving through his mouth as he smirked softly. "Your bird is locked in the bathroom. I've drugged her. She'll be fine. The same cannot be said for you."

"And why is that?" Jonathan enquired, his brow arched and a sinister look held in his eyes as the voice in his head begged for him to do something with the trick up his sleeve. Jonathan rolled his eyes as he heard it, slowly moving further into his apartment and glaring at the intruder.

"Boss said that I can't let you leave her if you came back. He gave me specific orders. Said if you came back then you didn't transfer him."

"Well, you're under new orders now," Jonathan spoke, clapping his hands together loudly as he did so. "Your boss is going to Arkham. It is where he belongs now, believe me."

"I'm under his orders," the man snapped at Jonathan who clenched his hands by his sides. "I don't take orders from you."

"Unfortunately you're in the wrong place at the wrong time," Jonathan snapped. "You're not going to hurt Madison and you're not going to hurt me. This all sounds rather pointless now, doesn't it?"

"Says who?" the man asked, waving his gun around at the end of his hand in Jonathan's direction. "You don't have anyone here, Doc."

"Oh, I do, and that is your mistake," Jonathan chuckled and the man's brows furrowed together in slight confusion. He didn't really know what was happening with Doctor Crane.

"What are you talking about?"

"My other friend," Jonathan said, moving into his case as he placed it onto his coffee table. The man continued to watch Jonathan, too intrigued with what the doctor was doing. And then he saw the mask. Jonathan looked at it with joy as the man's eyes widened.

"What the hell?" he asked.

"My friend," Jonathan explained, placing the mask onto his face and quickly raising his hand, the gas spraying everywhere as the man began to scream loudly, clutching onto his face as Jonathan advanced onto him, taking the gun from his hands and using the blunt end of it to hit him on the top of his head to silence him.

Jonathan dropped the gun onto his sofa and he removed his mask, placing it back into his case along with the gas up his sleeve. He straightened out his jacket and snapped the case shut, shaking his head in disbelief as he did so. He then moved over to the bathroom, turning the key in the door and pushing it open, not sure what to expect when he saw her.

"Madison," Jonathan spoke her name softly when he saw her. She was laid in his bathtub, her head slumped on the edge and her limbs tangled underneath and around her body. He dropped to his knees, his finger reaching out as he placed his cold tips onto her neck, checking her pulse. She was stable, but most certainly drugged. The main thing was that she was sleeping. Jonathan wondered about what to do to the man. Calling the police would be a guaranteed question session and he could do without that.

But, the man had been drugged up to his eyeballs. When he awoke then he would still be screaming about his nightmare.

Jonathan smirked at hearing that and left Madison in the bath, appeased that she would be safe for another ten minutes whilst he disposed of the man down by the alleyway of his building in the bins.

...

Jonathan watched as Madison slept and he laced his fingers together, leaning forward and wondering what they had given her. He knew that the obvious would have been flunitrazepam. Falcone would have easily had access to drugs like that and Madison looked completely out of it.

"Jonathan," he heard her slowly mumble his name and he stood up, walking over to where she was laid on his sofa. He slowly moved her body, sitting her up and then pulling her across his lap, allowing her back to rest against the arm of the sofa. Her hands moved to his body, stuffing into his clothes and she rested her head onto his shoulder, willing for him to hold her closer.

Her eyes remained closed and she tried to remember what had happened before. She had no idea where she was or what had happened. The only thing that she knew was that Jonathan was with her.

"Do you remember what happened?" Jonathan whispered, his voice soft as his arm wrapped around her waist and his other one rested on top of the one which was clinging onto his shirt. She shook her head, gurgling slightly.

"No," she replied. "I was at work...and...someone...I got a drink at the diner...then..."

"Okay," Jonathan replied, his voice calming as he did so. "You don't need to try and remember. It's okay. He's gone."

"What happened to me?" Madison whispered, her eyes droopily looking up at him and his pale features. He looked back down at her, wondering indeed what had happened.

"Someone drugged you to get me to transfer Falcone to Arkham," Jonathan spoke. "I did so. They're blackmail didn't go as planned. The man left when I said he'd been transferred."

"I...what?" Madison asked. She hadn't really been listening to anything which he had told her and he shook his head, sighing lightly as he did so.

"I'll clarify for you later," Jonathan assured her. "Try to sleep."

...

Jonathan had quite a deal getting rid of Madison later on. He needed to go out and destroy the stock which he had in the Narrows before things got out of hand. That meant Madison needed to go home. She was still drugged up slightly, not feeling well. But, she didn't tell Danny that when he picked her up from Jonathan's on his way home. She just said that she thought had the flu.

Jonathan had persuaded her not to say anything. She felt uncomfortable but he didn't need anymore repercussions coming his way. Madison had reluctantly agreed, knowing that Danny would just continue to question her about Falcone and why he had been blackmailing Jonathan. She couldn't deal with it in her state. She just wanted to sleep, but, she didn't want to leave Jonathan.

She crawled into bed as soon as she stepped into her home. Her parents look concerned but she remained stubborn and saying that she felt ill.

...

"What happened to you yesterday?" Rachel asked when she saw Madison walk into the office and she looked slightly tired still. She shook her head slowly and yawned, sitting in her seat.

"I went home," she said, not totally lying. "I didn't feel too well. I tried to call you, but, you weren't answering," Madison lied.

"I was busy," Rachel said; her voice still apologetic as she frowned. "I was in court. Are you feeling better?"

"I'm fine," Madison spoke, not a total lie but not the entire truth. "I'm okay now. What are we doing now?"

"What we do best," Rachel smiled. "Prosecute."

...

"We need to talk," Madison snapped as soon as she saw Jonathan that afternoon. She'd broken most traffic laws on her way down to Arkham, demanding to see Jonathan from the receptionist who said that he was busy. Madison simply made her way down to his office whilst the receptionist looked confused; wondering what was going on between her and the head psychiatrist.

Jonathan entered the office and shut the door, his shoulders slumping downwards as he closed the door and looked back at her, a finger pushing his glasses further onto his nose.

"What do you want to talk about?" Jonathan asked her and he sat down in his seat, lacing his fingers together as Madison's jaw fell open slightly.

"Are you kidding me?" Madison snapped at him. "I'm not drugged up to my eyeballs now, Jonathan. I want to know what happened."

Jonathan sighed to himself, removing his glasses and tucking his hair behind his ears as he did so. He always did it when he was slightly nervous, which he was at that moment in time.

"Fine," Jonathan nodded at her. "I'll tell you what happened."

"Thank you," Madison said; relief evident in her voice.

"Falcone called me into Blackgate, asking me to transfer him to Arkham. I was going to say no, but, he informed me that he had you held hostage in my apartment. I had no chance but to transfer him to Arkham, Madison," Jonathan said and she nodded once, dropping her head into her hands as she did so.

"I don't know how he captured you, but, you were drugged. Flunitrazepam would be my best guess."

"What?" Madison asked and Jonathan nodded at her, knowing that she didn't know what it was.

"It's rohypnol...I'm sure you've come across it in some cases," Jonathan said and Madison nodded.

"What happened after that?"

"Well, I got to the apartment, informed the man that I had transferred Falcone and he left me to make sure that you were safe," Jonathan said gently. "To be honest, I don't think that you should be working today. You're not back at your best, are you?"

"I'm fine," Madison snapped back at him. "You don't need to worry."

"Hmm," Jonathan said, not fully convinced. "Anyway, everything is okay now, Madison. You're safe."

"Do you think so?" Madison asked. "You were right. Even from behind bars he is still getting to us."

"Not anymore," Jonathan said. "Come with me, Madison."

She eyed him with suspicion before she stood up and took the hand which he was offering her. Jonathan continued to smirk lightly as he led her through Arkham, passing doctors on his way to see his latest conquer. Falcone had just been transferred to Arkham that moment, muttering about the Scarecrow as he went. Jonathan's plan was coming together in two days time. Madison would see his work. He didn't need to hide it from her anymore.

"Where are we going?" Madison asked, struggling to keep up with Jonathan and his long strides as she kept pulling her black dress down as it kept riding up due to her long and ungraceful movements.

"You'll see," Jonathan assured her, unlocking the door to the secure wing.

"Jonathan, I don't have much time," Madison complained. She didn't like Arkham. Everything about it gave her the chills.

"Here," Jonathan said, nodding through the small gap in the door to Falcone in his room. Madison bent down, looking in to where the man sat, withering around in his chair and muttering about Scarecrow.

"What happened?" Madison wondered.

"He's suffering from a mental breakdown," Jonathan said and Madison looked back at him, her eyes narrowed as she did so. She shook her head forcefully, unable to believe what he was telling her.

"No," she said back to him. "I know that he's not. He's a crime boss, Jonathan. He's never been mentally ill. You've been doing his dirty work for him."

"I have just given him drugs, Madison," Jonathan sighed. "I've done it to relax him and calm him down. Psychopharmacology is my primary study."

"So you've done that to him?" Madison asked. "Why?"

"The mind can only take so much, Madison," Jonathan whispered and she looked at him with suspicion as a gleam formed in his eye. "His mental breakdown has come from this."

"Jonathan," Madison sighed his name. "He's supposed to be on trial. He can't be in here and hiding."

"He's not," Jonathan promised her. "He's had a mental breakdown."

"I can't believe that," Madison said to him, holding her hands up in a surrender motion. "I've believed everything so far...just...I can't...Jonathan...none of it seems right. I think that your drugs might have made him worse."

"Possibly," Jonathan replied before he heard his name being called over the intercom and he looked back at Madison. "What does it matter? He's done nothing but cause us problems anyway."

"It matters because he deserves to be in Blackgate for that, Jonathan. He deserves that for what he did to us," Madison declared. "You'd best go. I need to get back to work."

"Dinner tonight?" Jonathan checked as they began to walk down the corridor and Madison shrugged gently.

"I suppose so," she declared before Jonathan grabbed onto her wrist, turning her around and bringing her closer to him as they stood in the quiet entrance. She looked at him, wondering what he was doing as he tucked her hair behind her ear.

"You can trust me, Madison," he whispered. "You know that, don't you?"

"I know," she replied, kissing him swiftly. "I need to go. You go see to your patient."

She quickly turned on her heel, leaving the Asylum and trying to fight her gut feeling as she pulled her phone out. But, the problem with the gut is that it won't go away. No matter how hard you try to make it.

"Rachel. I think you should come down to the Asylum."

...

A/N: Now it is getting intense again! Next chapter should be better! Anyway, thank you to Teacupful, Hahaitstasha, Guest ans Fangirl-Karla for reviewing the previous chapter! Do let me know what you think please!


	23. Chapter 23

"I've called for Rachel to come over," Madison informed Jonathan as soon as he approached her. She'd gone back into the Asylum, looking into Falcon's cell as he continued his muttering. She didn't particularly understand what was happening. She failed to believe that he was mentally ill by his own self destruction. Something about that was wrong. But, as she looked at him, she knew he wasn't right.

"Why would you do that?" Jonathan wondered from her, his eyes soft and a brow arched. Madison remained silent, running a hand through her hair as she did so.

"She'll find out that he has been transferred and she won't be pleased, Jonathan," Madison informed him whilst Jonathan's eyes glared at hers. Why was she doing this to him? But, never mind, he would have a plan come to mind soon enough. "I've understood why you've done everything so far...but now...yes, transfer him here to protect me. I get that, Jonathan. I know why you did it. But, whatever you've given him...it's not right. Is it your form of revenge?"

"Something like that," Crane mumbled back to her, folding his arms and shaking his head. He'd tell her the truth sooner or later. Miss Dawes would come by and ruin things. Never mind. They couldn't stop him now.

"It's wrong, Jonathan," Madison shook her head. "I don't get this. I don't understand any of this." Madison's voice reached a tone which Jonathan struggled to hear as she pointed into Falcone's cell. "I don't know what you're doing."

"You'll see soon, Madison," Jonathan promised her, moving across to her, his fingers lacing into hers as she instinctively stepped closer, the scent of the doctor moving through her body as she did so. She shook her head softly as Jonathan leant down, whispering into her ear. "You need to trust me, Madison. You need to believe in me. After everything that I've done for you, can you not trust me?"

"Of course I want to trust you," Madison replied, pulling back so that she could look into his blue eyes which had softened slightly under her intrusive stare. "I do trust you, Jonathan. I simply don't know what you've done to Falcone and it scares me slightly."

"You don't need to be scared," Jonathan smirked. "It's me, isn't it? Why would you be scared of me?"

"I'm not," Madison said forcefully.

"Madison," Rachel's voice rang out. Madison jumped away from Jonathan, moving her hands through her hair as she felt Jonathan continue to glare at her before he moved his eyes away and back onto Miss Dawes. "Doctor Crane."

"Miss Dawes," Jonathan greeted her softly. Rachel nodded once at Madison who looked back at her and gulped but inclined her head gently. She looked back into Falcone's cell as he continued to mutter scarecrow.

"I've filed my report with the judge. There is nothing to add on this case," Jonathan spoke to her and Rachel looked at him, her eyes narrowed as she folded her arms and held her coat tightly in her hands.

"Isn't it convenient that a middle aged man has a mental breakdown the day before he is supposed to be indicted?" Rachel wondered aloud, her brow rising. Madison remained silent, her arms wrapped around her waist as she bit down on her bottom lip, not knowing what to say in the conversation. She didn't know what she had done.

"As you can see, Miss Dawes, there is nothing convenient about this," Jonathan spoke back, his teeth clicking on some of the words as Rachel looked onto Falcone again, hearing him muttering.

"What's Scarecrow?" she wondered.

"He's suffering from delusions by seeing something which frightens him. In this case, a scarecrow," Jonathan told her, attempting to hide the grin which was forming on his lips. Rachel shook her head, unable to believe anything which was happening.

"I want my own report on Falcone," Rachel snapped. She took off down the corridor, motioning for Madison to follow her. The intern looked at Jonathan whose face was emotionless and unreadable. She shrugged before following Rachel to the elevator and Jonathan kept up with the pair of them, trying to deter Rachel from filing her own report. It was the last thing which he needed.

"First thing in the morning, that will be done," Jonathan assured her as she pressed the button to the elevator.

"Tonight," she spoke back. "I've already paged the relevant doctor."

"Tonight then," Jonathan sighed, stepping into the elevator and placing his key into the panel for the basement. Madison stood in between the pair of them, feeling Jonathan rest his hand flat onto the small of her back and she shivered slightly, closing her eyes as his fingers traced circles on the material of her dress.

"This way, please," Jonathan said; stepping out first and keeping his hand on Madison as Rachel stuck to her intern's side. Their heels clicked against the concrete floor, the pair of them looking at each other with wonder. "I think there is something which you should see."

"Jonathan," Madison sighed his name, looking up to him as he pushed open the double doors and walked into the room. Rachel and Madison felt their mouths drop open with wonder as they looked around.

"And this is where we make the medicine," Jonathan whispered.

Rachel rested her hand onto Madison's arm, pulling her away from Jonathan so that she could wrap her arm around her wrist. Madison's eyes remained settled on the scene in front of her, the people working down below in orange jumpsuits as people pointed guns in their direction, making sure that they didn't escape. Liquid was being poured into the water system and chemicals were being brewed. The smell was unable to miss. None of it made sense.

"What is this?" Madison wondered. But, Jonathan continued to look forwards, not glancing to the woman he was supposedly dating.

"Come on," Rachel urged her. "Madison...come on..."

Madison allowed Rachel to pull her from the room and in the end she didn't resist. She kept up with Rachel's pace, her blood rushing around her body, adrenaline coursing along with it as they moved into the elevator and the doors shut.

"What the hell is happening?" Madison snapped out.

"I don't know," Rachel shook her head as the alarm began to sound and the two women looked at each other in horror. "He's your boyfriend, Madison!"

"I didn't know!" Madison snapped back. "I didn't know about any of this!"

Before Rachel had time to yell back at her, the sound of the elevator doors opening hit their ears. Rachel turned around to see the tall figure in the doorway whilst Madison did the same, screaming loudly before she turned back to the control panel, hitting buttons. The figure quickly grabbed Rachel, pulling her out of the elevator and into the corridor, raising his arm and allowing the gas to flow into her nostrils.

"Madison," his voice spoke, his voice creepily moving into her ears. He stepped forwards, grabbing onto her as she fought against him and his men grabbed onto Rachel, lifting her withering body into their arms.

"What are you doing?" Madison snapped at him, managing to look up and onto the burlap mask. "What is this?"

"I'll tell you...I promise..." Jonathan spoke as Madison kept on trying to push him away, but, he was having none of it. She wasn't escaping him that easily.

"No, you won't," Madison snapped back at him. "You've done nothing but lie to me."

"For your own good," Jonathan promised as Madison saw Rachel being carried away.

"What have you done to her?" she snapped, trying to push past the doctor as she looked at her mentor being dragged back into the room where the medicine was supposedly made. "Jonathan! What have you done?"

"Madison, calm down," Jonathan urged her, moving his hand into his pocket and pulling out the small pen which he carried around with him. He quickly pushed the lid off, slamming the pointed needle into her neck as she slumped in his arms. "We'll talk later, Mads. Go to sleep."

...

Jonathan sat in his office, remaining calm as he thought about what was happening downstairs. The medicine was being pushed into the water system and by the end of the night his plan would come together. Gotham would be held to ransom and there was nothing which anyone could do about it. A sense of euphoria washed through his body as he thought about what was going to happen.

Miss Dawes was still downstairs, moaning in her sleep whilst Jonathan dealt with his girlfriend before he dealt with her. Madison was much more important than some DA. Finally, she came around, her eyes groggily moving open, but, her limbs still felt heavy.

"You're awake," Jonathan declared and her green eyes found his blue ones, both of them looking at each other with a familiarity.

"What's happened?" Madison asked, pushing her hand through her hair with a lot of effort. She didn't know that it would be so hard to move. "Jonathan...what have you been doing?"

"It seems that I haven't been entirely truthful with you," Jonathan sighed, removing his glasses and dropping them into his pocket. He laced his fingers together, resting them onto the desk. "You've really given me no choice but to tell you the truth now."

"What are you doing?" Madison asked him. "Why are you doing this?"

"If you'd like to be quiet then I will explain," Jonathan told her, his voice curt as she pursed her lips into a firm line and tried to move her legs. Jonathan hadn't got much time with his girlfriend. He needed to go and sort Miss Dawes out.

"Me and Falcone have been in business," Jonathan spoke, standing up and moving around the room behind Madison, not looking into her eyes as he spoke about the events which had happened. "I sent his thugs to Arkham whilst he brought in shipments for the medicine which I am making. Well...it isn't medicine...it's a toxin. A fear toxin. Whenever it is sprayed then the person instantly sees what they fears, take Falcone for instance. He's scared of me. The Scarecrow."

Madison took in everything which he was telling her, her eyes looking onto the certificates on his walls as she did so, the tears slowly falling down her pale cheeks as she shook her head, unable to believe that he was telling her the truth. The Jonathan she knew would never do anything like that.

"No," she whispered. "No...you didn't...why...why would you do this?"

"The man I'm working for intends to have the toxin deployed into the water system. It will be sprayed through Gotham tonight. No one can stop it from happening. Falcone intended to out my secret. I didn't give him the chance," Jonathan chuckled, moving down so that his chin was resting on her shoulder. She stiffened as his breath hit her neck and his lips rested on the base of her shoulder.

"I don't believe this," Madison whispered, her voice weak. "You're not...this isn't you...it can't be."

"Oh, it can be," Jonathan whispered. "Do you think that I did everything to protect you? I did it to protect myself. I did it to get you off my back, Madison. You just wouldn't leave me alone, would you?"

"No," Madison replied. "You didn't...I was kidnapped."

"Yes, you were," Jonathan agreed, standing tall and placing his hands behind his back as he began to walk to the front of her, bending down and looking into her eyes, his hands resting on her bare thighs as she remained snivelling. "You were kidnapped and Falcone did threaten me with that. I did rescue you, Madison. I won't deny it. But, everything else that I did was to keep myself safe. Did you really think that you were special, Madison?"

"You...we...I know you, Jonathan," Madison said with determination in her voice. "I know that you feel something for me."

"You think so?" he arched a brow and rested his hand onto her cheek, smiling at her as he did so. "You were a very nice distraction, I have to admit. And spending time with you has been lovely. But, the difference between you and me is that I don't love, Madison."

"I don't believe that," Madison shook her head at him. "I don't believe anything about that."

"You should," Jonathan replied. "I've lied to you, Madison. Everything which I've done has been a lie yet you still have optimism. You really are a naive girl."

"Don't do this," Madison pleaded with him. "Don't bring Gotham down...you don't want to..."

"No," Jonathan shook his head. "I don't care about Gotham. I care about the fear which is about to be spread. Don't worry though, I'll keep you safe. I can promise you that. I've done that for a while now."

"What are you going to do?" Madison worried as Jonathan pecked her on the cheek and stood tall. "Jonathan, you don't have to do this. You'll go to jail!"

"Jail isn't an option, Mads," Jonathan chuckled. "Now, you stay here and I'll be back later."

"Jonathan!" Madison yelled his name out loud. "Don't you dare leave me here!"

She tried to stand up, collapsing onto the arm of the chair and hitting her ribs on the way down. She winced as she did so and Jonathan sighed, placing his glasses back onto his eyes before he helped to pick her up from the floor, depositing her onto his sofa.

"Now, relax, and I shall be back soon," Jonathan promised her, tucking her hair behind her ears as she shook her head.

"Don't do this, Jonathan...you're not like this...I know that..."

"I may not be," Jonathan whispered. "But he certainly is."

...

A/N: Thank you very much to reverie-scriptor, Guest and Fangirl-Karla for reviewing!

The amount of hits on this story is dropping so please do let me know if you are still sticking with this, it really is encouraging to know, please?


	24. Chapter 24

It was funny really. Jonathan had no other words for it. If he didn't laugh then he'd go crazy. Well, crazier than he already was. Seeing the Batman wreck havoc over his lackeys in the Asylum filled him with a sense of giddiness like a child at Christmas. He'd managed to escape the Batman's grasp and instead rushed back up to his office where Madison was. Miss Dawes didn't have long left and the men who worked for him weren't of importance. The police would be on their way soon and he had no reason to be seen as suspicious. He would plead innocent if they came into his office and asked him anything.

Of course, that meant that he had to keep Madison quiet. She knew everything and he was sure that she wasn't about to just let it go. He'd probably broken the young girl's heart.

_Do you really care about her heart?_

"Not really," Jonathan admitted to the voice as he took the steps up to the first floor. "I suppose it is best that she knows the truth now, isn't it?"

_I don't know. It depends if you care for her as much as you had appeared to. I have to admit, you really did impress me earlier. Telling her that she was a distraction was cruel, yet entertaining._

"Well, she was a distraction, wasn't she? I am not saying that she wasn't a good one, but, I don't need her distracting me at this moment in time."

_It seems to me that she is doing just that. She'll always be a distraction because you care for her, Jonathan. There's only one way to stop you from caring._

"I'm quite happy to continue caring if it stops you from having your way with her."

_It's your choice, Jonathan._

Jonathan didn't answer back to the voice as he moved into his pocket, groping around for the key to his office until he finally found it. He allowed himself a brief moment before he slid the silver into the lock and turned it, opening the door. He didn't know what he had expected, but, a slap in the face was not one of them.

Madison's hand stung as she moved it away from Jonathan's cheek and she grasped onto it, willing it to stop burning as Jonathan placed his pale fingers to the red mark which was forming on the side of his pale skin. He coughed once, containing his rage before he shut the door and locked it once again, making sure the key was securely in his pocket before he glanced onto Madison with his blue orbs.

"I thought that I'd feel better after doing that," Madison mumbled, pacing up and down the room and shaking her hand.

"And do you?" Jonathan asked her snidely and she looked at him with a raised brow.

"Let me have another go and I will tell you," she spat back at him, wanting to do nothing more than hit him until she smacked some sense into him. She wanted him to go back to how he had been. The man she had met wasn't the one who was stood before her with a smirk on his face. But, he was the same. He was Jonathan Crane.

"I think once was enough," Jonathan coughed back, placing his hands behind his back as Madison perched on the edge of his desk, her hands resting on her lap as she continued to stare at him, wanting nothing more than to find an escape route. Everything about him was suddenly intoxicating. From the way he stood to the way he was looking at her. She slowly felt herself suffocating.

"I don't believe you," Madison suddenly declared, feeling braver than she was feeling as she looked at Jonathan who seemed more interested playing with the glasses which he had removed from his eyes.

"What part don't you believe?" Jonathan asked her. "Is it the part where I'm not as saintly as I seem or the part where you were just a little distraction for me?"

"Both parts," Madison declared softly. "I know you, Jonathan. I know that there has to be a reason for why you're doing this."

"Why do you think you know me?" Jonathan asked her, his shoulders shrugging breezily before he dropped his glasses back onto the end of his nose. "You think that you know me because we slept together? Do you think that you know my life story because we went on some dates?"

"No," Madison snapped back. "I know you because I saw your face when you stopped that man from mugging me. I know you because you held me that night I was drugged. I know you from the way you held my hand in that courtroom, assuring me that everything was going to be okay. And then there was the morning when you told me how you were protecting me from Falcone."

Jonathan continued to stare at her as she ranted, her hands moving around with ferocity and emotion as he remained frozen, his face unreadable and lacking any care for what she was saying.

"Tell me that wasn't all a lie," Madison whispered to him. "It can't have been a lie...not that..."

"What can I say?" Jonathan drawled. "I'm just very good at manipulating people."

"Rachel was right about you all along," Madison folded her arms and shook her head whilst Jonathan shrugged; slowly placing his hands into his pockets whilst he paced up and down the side of his desk. "So...none of it meant anything?"

"I wouldn't say that it meant nothing," Jonathan informed her. "I would just say that it wasn't particularly as important as you'd hoped it to be. I have ulterior motives, Madison. I needed to keep you close so that Miss Dawes didn't come sniffing. When you overheard my conversation with Falcone then I panicked. I had no option but to make you think that I was sending his thugs here so that I could keep you safe. It made you look at me in some form of hero complex, didn't it?"

"Falcone never threatened me or you, did he?" Madison checked, needing the clarity in her life."You two were in each other's pockets all along."

"Until he decided that he was going to threaten me. He said that he would tell the cops about my experiments in the Asylum and what I was doing underneath the building. I couldn't have that, could I? I had to poison him. Well, he did have one of his men kidnap you if I didn't move him. I suppose you could say that I did save you one time," Jonathan shrugged and Madison pursed her lips, shaking her head, still unable to believe anything which he was telling her.

"And I was nothing?" Madison checked; her voice low and soft as she did so. Her eyes looked back into his whilst he shrugged.

"I enjoyed spending time with you," Jonathan admitted to her. "In the end I did begin to care about you. I started to realise that maybe you were worth keeping around and safe. Why do you think that I kept you close?"

"I don't know," Madison admitted. "I don't know anything about you anymore, Jonathan, do I?"

"No, you don't," he assured her. "You really don't, Madison."

"And I was falling for you," Madison said and she stood up, chuckling to herself as she did so. She shook her head, folding her arms around her waist as she stopped looking at him, not knowing how she would cope as she did so. Everything kept whirling around in her head, wondering why Jonathan was doing this. None of it made sense.

"Well, that wasn't wise, Madison, was it?" Jonathan informed her, no hint of sarcasm in his voice as he did so. "I knew that we weren't going to last when this came out."

"Really?" Madison asked him, her voice going hysterical as she did so. She shook her head, glaring over at him. "Well, you've really blown it now, Jonathan, haven't you?"

"No need to go crazy on me, Madison," Jonathan said lowly, sensing her hyperventilating as she did so.

"No, I'll let you go crazy," Madison promised him. "Why did you do this? What did you gain from this?"

"I gain the mass production of my toxin. You don't know how long I've been working on this." He said and Madison shook her head.

"I don't want to know," she promised him. "Gotham...the people in this city...you don't need to do this, Jonathan. What did you do to Rachel?"

"No, I really do," Jonathan said back to her. "Miss Dawes isn't a problem anymore. She managed to find out too much. She's been taken care of."

"What do you mean?" Madison worried.

"You'll soon see, Madison." He said and checked his watch as sirens suddenly were heard. Madison looked to the door and Jonathan pulled the key out.

"Stay here, Madison," he demanded her, but, she had a different idea. Madison quickly rushed forwards, grabbing onto Jonathan's wrist and twisting it behind his back just like her brother had taught her. Jonathan moved against her as he felt the pain move through his veins and he laughed once as he dropped the key onto the floor.

"How silly of you, Madison," Jonathan hissed as she felt her let go of his wrist so that she could bend down and pick the key up from the floor. Jonathan turned around on his heel, wrapping his hand into her hair and hauling her back up, the key still on the floor as Madison shrieked out in pain.

"Get off of me!" Madison yelled at him, trying to pull his hand off of her hair, but, he wasn't budging.

"Why do you fight me, Madison?"

"Because you're an ass!" Madison simply spat back, witty comebacks failing her as Jonathan slammed her body up against the wall, thankful that she was quite weak. She grunted at the contact of the painted wall, the breath being knocked out of her and she coughed once as Jonathan pressed her cheek against the wall, flattening her face and causing her to struggle to breath. He moved close to her, his mouth right next to hers and his eyes glaring into her own.

"How original," Jonathan drawled. "Your insults are always the same, Madison."

"How could you do this, Jonathan?" Madison spat as Jonathan pushed her tighter against the wall. She grunted out in pain whilst he chuckled.

"Quite easily. Fear is something which needs to be instilled into everything. You'll soon see that."

"No," Madison snapped back. "You can't."

"Oh, I can," Jonathan chuckled, pulling her hair back and resting her head against his shoulder, his lips slowly resting on her throat as he did so. "I told you that you don't need to worry, Madison. I'll look after you during this."

"And why would I believe that?" Madison snapped, using her elbow to hit him in the stomach. He coughed once, doubling over and grabbing onto his stomach before Madison rushed to the key on the floor, picking it up as she felt him suddenly lunge onto the floor, his hand wrapping around her ankle. She tripped over, falling flat onto her face, her dress riding up to just below her hips as Jonathan crawled over to her, turning her around and pinning himself on top of her, his hands wrapping around her wrists as her chest heaved heavily.

"Look, I've had enough, Madison," he growled dangerously. "The police are on their way. I need you to be a good girl and keep quiet, oaky?"

"Why would I do that?" Madison asked him through gritted teeth before he bent down, kissing her gently on the cheek before placing a slim finger onto her lips.

"You don't want to hurt me, do you, Madison?" he whispered. "I've kept you safe. Now, you need to repay the favour."

"What makes you think I would do that?" she hissed, wriggling about underneath his weight and he grinned at her.

"You love me, don't you, Madison?" he checked. "You've fallen for me."

"No," Madison shook her head. "I said I was doing. Now...I don't even know who you are."

"Well, it looks like we'll have to keep you quiet then, doesn't it?" Crane checked and Madison began to yell again as he moved into his pocket and produced a small looking pen, ready to drug her. Madison tried to push him off, wishing that she was bigger than he was.

Jonathan suddenly looked up as he heard a banging noise slam against his office door and he instantly let Madison gain the advantage and push herself up from him, scurrying into a corner as the door quickly opened and a Bat like figure stood there, huffing and puffing as Jonathan looked at the briefcase on his desk.

"Not so fast, Doc," Batman declared, grabbing onto his wrist and hauling him back to him, forcing him to his knees on the floor as he looked at Jonathan. The gas was still up his sleeve. He just needed the mask. "Who are you working for?"

"You'll not know," Crane said. "It's too late."

The Bat quickly moved, giving Jonathan the chance to lift his arm, but, the Batman was quicker, pushing his arm into his own line of vision. Jonathan inhaled the smoke, wheezing and coughing as Madison's eyes widened at what she saw. Jonathan was laughing, but clearly pained as he did so.

"Who were you working for?" Batman snapped.

"Ra's...Ra's Al Ghul..." he coughed.

"Ra's Al Ghul is dead," the Bat spat back. "Who are you working for, Crane?"

"Doctor Crane isn't here right now," Jonathan replied n a dream state. "Maybe you'd like to make an appointment?"

The Bat breathed deeply before he slammed Crane against the wall and looked at Madison.

"You're Rachel's friend?" he checked and she nodded.

"Where is she?" Madison worried.

"She's going to be fine," he said reassuringly to her. "What are you doing with Crane?"

"I didn't know what he was doing," Madison assured the Bat as the noise of SWAT echoed through the corridors and the Bat looked at her, believing her words.

"You should leave," he informed her. "Get off the island."

"I know," she said and the Bat quickly disappeared as Madison looked down at Jonathan who remained unconscious, her mind still racing at what she had seen. Madison moved over to the door, looking around as a SWAT officer spotted her and a normal officer rushed forwards, looking at the young woman. He noted her as being Danny's sister and he wrapped his arm around her waist.

"What are you doing here, Madison?" he snapped at her and she looked at him, her eyes still darting back to Jonathan on the floor as an officer checked his pulse.

"I...I was..." Madison blabbered on, not sure of what to say.

"Danny is outside. Come on, we'll get you out of here," he assured her, pulling her from the room as Jonathan stirred, his head pounding and the voice taking over.

...

A/N: Words fail to explain how happy I was with the reviews last night! It seriously kept me motivated on this story! I know not a lot happened in this chapter, but, I have some more planned out so please keep reading! Thank you to daughterofapollo18, Ferret1623, Ariddle-Ascare, reverie-scriptor, kenzerooni, Guest, Fangirl-Karla, ArianeCrane and Teacupful for reviewing!

Seriously happy that you guys are liking it and I hope I'm managing to keep Crane in character and not make Madison a Mary Sue!

Please do let me know what you think so far!


	25. Chapter 25

"Jesus Christ, Mads," Danny sighed as soon as he saw Michael with his arm around his sister. Her cheek looked like it had a purple bruise forming on it and her legs were red and scraped. He rushed forwards, removing his coat from his arms and draping it over her shoulders as he nodded at Michael and walked his sister to the back row of police cruisers. "What happened to you?"

"I...I don't..." Madison began to speak as Danny stood in front of her, his hands firmly grasped onto her shoulders as he studied her and she looked around at the commotion which was happening. Why couldn't she speak? Why was she finding it so difficult to tell him what had happened? She supposed it was because she couldn't quite believe it herself.

"You're all bruised, Madison." He commented, his hand gently running over her purpling cheek and she flinched at the contact his cold skin made with the bruise. "Who did this to you?"

"Jonathan," she whispered his name out and Danny's cheeks reddened as he heard her say his name. "He's not who I thought he was, Dan."

"What do you mean?" Danny asked and Madison shook her head, wrapping her arms around her elder brother's waist as he stiffened, his hand moving up and down her hair in his feeble attempt to soothe her. "Madison, talk to me. Tell me what happened."

"I...he's been making a toxin," she said after gulping loudly and pulling back to look at him, her eyes wide and still tear filled. "A toxin which induces fear into people and he's put it into the water supply. He's going to spread it through the city to hold it to ransom."

"What?" Danny asked, realising that none of it sounded plausible as Madison nodded at him, realising what she had just said to him. The water system was poisoned.

"Danny!" Madison suddenly shrieked. "You need to tell someone! You need to stop the water from being drunk or whatever will happen to it!"

"Whoa, slow down, Mads," he urged her and she shook her head at him, her hands wrapping around his upper arms as she shook him gently.

"No," she said. "Who is in charge?"

"Well...I take orders from Gordon," he said and she nodded.

"We need to find him," she pushed him; taking hold of his hand and dragging him back to the Asylum. He followed her quickly, searching for Gordon and wondering what his sister was talking about. Finally, they saw him lurking by the basement and Danny noted the way Madison shivered at the sudden chill in the room.

"Detective Gordon!" Madison called out, not knowing his status or who he was as soon as Danny nodded his head in his boss's direction. Gordon looked as Danny approached with Madison and he arched a brow.

"And who would you be, miss?" he asked, remaining polite as another one of Jonathan lackey's was pulled out from the basement. Danny placed a hand onto his hip, sniffing once and running his hand under his nose as he motioned down to Madison before she had a chance to answer for herself.

"She's my sister," he told Gordon.

"Madison," she spoke as Gordon offered her his hand and she shook it, instantly noting that the man was nothing if not respectful even in a time of emergency. "I need to talk to you about the water."

"We know," Gordon spoke and Madison blinked profusely, wondering if he did know. "Crane has been dumping his toxin into the water supply. The Batman informed me before he fled. It's too late now; it's been dispersed and has been in the water supply for weeks upon end."

"But..." Madison stumbled at that knowledge. "How has no one noticed?"

"The effects aren't effective if drank. It needs to be inhaled," he said to her and Madison shook her head, unable to believe what she was hearing.

"So, how does he intend for it to be inhaled?"

"We don't know. I'm going up to talk to Crane now," Gordon said and Madison shook her head, her mouth opening before she had the chance to think, as per usual.

"I'll talk to him," Madison spoke up and Danny shook his head.

"No," he snapped at his sister. "Not after what he did to you."

"I know him," Madison declared and Danny snorted loudly whilst Gordon raised a brow, wondering how she knew Crane exactly. "I know him better than you, Dan."

"Did you know that he was planning this?" Danny snapped at her. "Did you know he intended to cause a whole city to go crazy?"

"Of course not!" Madison snapped back at him.

"Well then, you don't know him," Danny said quickly to her and she ground her teeth together, the noise grating into her brother's ears as she did so. "He's hurt you, Madison. I'll be damned if you go near him again, do you understand me?"

"Hm," Madison simply said and looked back over to Gordon who had felt like he was watching a tennis match as he looked back and forth between the brother and sister duo act. "Have you found a Rachel Dawes?"

"The Batman took her," Gordon said and Madison nodded. "She's going to be okay, I have no doubt about that. Crane had sprayed her with his toxin. Were you with her when she was sprayed?"

"Yes," Madison admitted. "Jonathan brought us done here and then he turned. I don't know what happened."

"But, he kept you safe?" Gordon checked and Madison nodded. He had done. She couldn't quite grasp it herself.

"He locked me in his office," she mumbled. "He told me about his plan."

"Why would he keep you safe, Miss Walters?"

"I...well...in the long run, I'm not sure," Madison shook her head at it. "I had been dating him."

"I see," Gordon nodded, wondering if he could play this to his advantage. He was one hundred percent sure that he could. He just didn't know if it was wise or not. Crane had opened up to her willingly about his plans, maybe; just maybe, he'd tell her how he intended to get his toxin into the public.

"I had no idea what Jonathan was doing," Madison whispered up to Gordon. "I can try and talk to him if you need me to."

"I said no," Danny growled at his sister and she glared up at him.

"I didn't ask you, did I?" she barked her rhetorical question at him before Gordon eyed her with suspicion but nodded once.

"I'll go in first," he declared. "If it doesn't work then you can talk to him. But, not before, understand?"

"Understood," Madison agreed simply.

"Sir-" Danny began to interrupt, but, Gordon wasn't having of it.

"-With all due respect, Officer Walters, your sister is a grown woman. She can make her own decisions," Gordon said to Danny who sighed, knowing that there was no point in arguing with the boss. Madison nodded once at Gordon who began to walk back up the staircase with Madison on his tail. Danny was called away to the basement to apprehend some more of the workers. He'd looked hesitant at first until Gordon assured him that he would look after Madison. She'd quickly squeezed his hand before walking to the secure wing.

Gordon offered her a seat outside the room before he moved inside of it, questioning Crane before the guard handed him the burlap mask which they found in his briefcase. Crane stared at the mask before his eyes found Gordon's and he shook his head, shaking in juvenile delight at the fact that they were too late.

Gordon stuffed the mask back into the guard's hands when it became apparent that Crane wouldn't shed any light onto the situation. He nodded at Madison who took in a deep breath of murky air before standing up and hesitantly walking into the room. Her eyes locked onto Jonathan as he sat in the chair, the straight jacket confining his lanky limbs whilst Madison gulped at the look he was giving her.

"How very nice of you to come and visit, Mads," he grinned, using a nickname which she hated him using. "I've wanted to talk to you for a while?"

"What are you talking about, Jonathan?" Madison sighed, running her hand along her forehead as she looked at him.

"No," he replied. "I'm not Jonathan. He's not here at the moment. He's busy somewhere plotting how to lie to you. I'd never have lied to you, Madison. I'd have gotten rid of you months ago."

Madison looked at him, wondering why he was referring to himself in third person before she played along with the game, knowing that it was probably the only way she was going to get any information out of him.

"And who would you be?" Madison wondered and Jonathan grinned, shaking his head which caused his greasing black hair to swirl around his face.

"You've got it, have you?" he checked and she remained silent, not answering him or his strange question. "I'm his other friend. He doesn't let me come out very often, tragic, I know."

"Jonathan always said that he was too busy for friends," Madison responded after an awkward silence fell onto them. Jonathan continued to allow the smirk on his face to widen at hearing her.

"He can't help _but_ have time for them when they're inside his head," he replied. "You see, he always wanted to keep you around. He thought that you were a nice distraction for him. He'd never let me talk to you or tell you how I felt."

"And how would that be?" Madison asked, knowing that Gordon was stood in the doorway and watching the interaction between them. The two armed men had stepped out for a moment whilst Madison had her words with him. She kept her distance, still scared of what the man in the chair could do even though he was restrained.

"I knew that you were making Jonathan weak. I knew that he was beginning to care for you. Caring makes people weak, wouldn't you agree?" he asked her and she shrugged, not caring to answer the question. He chuckled once and shrugged awkwardly against the tight confinement of his jacket. "But, I have to give it to him, he never lost track of what he had to do."

"And what was that?" Madison enquired and Gordon's ears pricked up to another level as he sensed that he could gain an answer from the man in the chair. But, Crane simply chuckled. Madison folded her arms across her waist, still clutching onto Danny's uniform jacket as the sound ran down her spine, her hairs standing on edge as his blue, menacing orbs looked at her again.

"You know the basics, Madison," he whispered. "You know what we've done with the toxin. You're digging for more information, aren't you?"

"And will you give it to me?" Madison asked and he shook his head at her.

"No. It's too late now. Jonathan wants you to know that you should get off of the island before it is too late. He thinks that you should flee before time is up for you to get out. Even now, he's trying to save you. Tragic, isn't it?"

"Something along those lines," Madison replied, her voice detached from emotion so that he couldn't use her feeling against her. He wasn't going to manipulate her again. She wasn't going to let him. "And what do you want me to do?"

"I think," he drawled, looking around with a contemplative stare. "I think that it would be interesting if you stuck around."

"Times up," Gordon suddenly spoke, his voice dry and Madison and Jonathan turned to look at him. She nodded, holding one finger up, pleading for another minute and Gordon nodded, tapping the face of his watch as she turned back to look at Crane.

"You'd best run along before it's time to play," he informed her and she nodded in agreement.

"If you're not Jonathan," she mumbled softly, "then who are you?"

"Who am I?" he repeated the question, the vacant orbs moving to the ceiling, the pale face scrunching up his features whilst he continued to think. "I'm your worst nightmare, aren't I? Jonathan was your favourite nightmare and I'm your worst one."

"You're sick, Jonathan," Madison declared over the noise of his laughs. They instantly stopped as his eyes glared at her and the silence moved around them, the sound of a pin dropping would have been audible from miles away at this rate.

"I'm not," he spoke back. "I'm really not."

"Come on," Gordon said, stepping closer to Madison and taking a hold of her arm, gently pulling her back from the room as she continued to stare at Jonathan.

"You want to know who I am?" he called out as she moved around the corner, unable to see him. Gordon wrapped his arm around her waist, keeping her moving as she rubbed her eyes and Jonathan's screams rang through the corridors of Arkham.

"Scarecrow...Madison...that's me...the Scarecrow!"

...

A/N: I haven't done two chapters in a day in a while. Novelty this is. Anyway, if you are reading this then I hope you can review and let me know what you think about the Scarecrow! I imagined this would be how he would behave, not too sure! Let me know what you think guys!


	26. Chapter 26

"We'll get you off of the island," Danny promised his sister, his arm staying around her waist as the pair of them rushed out from the Asylum and Madison continued to cry softly, her mind whirling around and her head pounding from the amount of crying which she had done. She didn't know how much more she could take of it. Night had fallen onto Gotham and it made the Narrows seem even creepier due to the darkness.

"And what are you going to do?" Madison asked her brother, Jonathan's warning ringing around in her ears. He told her to get off the island and as far away as she could from Gotham. She had no idea how he expected her to do that. Gotham enormity was impossible to escape in short notice. Besides, she had no money to get away with.

"I'm going back to the Asylum to work with Gordon," he informed her and Madison bit down on her bottom lip. She didn't want to leave him on the island.

"Can't you come with me?" Madison worried and he arched a brow as she stopped walking and SWAT officers drove past them as a noise began to whirl through the air. Danny's grip increased before he looked back into the Narrows, wondering what was going on.

"Hang on," Danny instructed her, holding up a finger as a SWAT van drove down the road and he walked across as soon as it had cleared. Madison remained stood where she was, looking tousled and battered as she wrapped her arms around her waist, glancing back to Arkham where Jonathan was. She took a deep breath as Danny shouted out loud, his voice muffled over other people talking. She knew that he was angry as he pointed to the bridge and Gordon appeared, resting his hand onto his shoulder.

"Crap," Danny mumbled as he shrugged Gordon's hand from his shoulder and grabbed onto Madison's elbow, steering her closer to the wall by the river and she looked at him with wide and expectant eyes.

"They're raising the bridges," he told her quickly. "There's been a mass breakout at Arkham in the past half an hour."

"What?" Madison snapped at her brother and he ran a hand through his short hair before dropping his fingers to his hips and wondering about what to do. "So you're telling me that we're stuck on this island with no way off whilst hundreds of mad men wander the streets?"

"Unfortunately that is what I am telling you," Danny replied to her, his voice low and full of hopelessness whilst Madison leant against the wall, breathing in deeply for air and allowing her mouth to hang open as she thought about what she had just been told.

"Officer Walters!" Gordon suddenly shouted and Danny turned around, his brow arched at Gordon who scratched his moustache for a second. "We need you to come with me."

"Why?" Madison was the one to answer and she grabbed onto Danny's hand before he could step away and move any further.

"We need to apprehend the prisoners, Miss Walters," Gordon told her quickly and Danny turned her away from the detective, his hands on her shoulders whilst she looked up to him.

"It's my job, Mads," he whispered lowly. "You stay near the bridge and keep hidden, do you understand me? There will be an officer to look after you."

"And why can't it be you?" Madison challenged him and he sighed once, resisting the urge to roll his eyes at her.

"I'm needed with Gordon's unit," Danny said, steering her by the upper arm as Gordon nodded once in understanding with the young officer. "Am I okay to leave her in another officer's care, sir?" he checked and Gordon motioned with his arm to the officers stationed by the bridge who were less capable. Madison complained as she went, but, her brother was much stronger and wouldn't take no for an answer.

"You look after her," Danny demanded from a young looking man and he nodded, guiding Madison to where his car was stationed as she looked back and Danny rushed off to Gordon and the others.

"Miss, this way," he spoke softly and Madison ground her teeth together but obeyed.

"Madison!" a sudden voice called her name and Madison turned around, looking as Rachel neared her, her breathing coming out in short pants as she enveloped Madison into a hug which took her by surprise. She never had Rachel down as the sentimental type.

"I've been so worried about you," Rachel told her, dropping her arms from the girl's shoulders and Madison shrugged once.

"I was fine. How were you?"

"I'm fine now," she promised her. "The Batman rescued me."

"Gordon said," Madison said and Rachel's eyes went wide as she saw the bruise forming on Madison's cheek.

"What happened to your cheek?" she wondered and Madison's hand quickly went to the spot which was sensitive to touch. Madison looked around and shook her head.

"Jonathan...well...we had a tousle and I fell...he didn't hit me," Madison assured Rachel who was beginning to look a little suspicious at her explanation. She nodded once, agreeing with what she had said before they saw a small boy being handled by the young man who had escorted Madison to his vehicle.

"Hey!" Rachel snapped at him, rushing over and Madison followed her as she rested her hands onto his shoulders, holding on tightly and glaring at the officer who did nothing but turn back to look at the rows of officer which were forming throughout the Narrows.

"We need to hide somewhere," Madison informed her mentor who grabbed the young boy by the hand and pulled him down a side street with Madison following them, not sure what else to do.

"Where's your parent's, sweetie?" Rachel asked, bending down to his height and tucking her hair behind her ear as she did so.

"I don't know," he mumbled. "I don't know where they went."

"Okay," Rachel nodded. "We'll find them after, okay, honey?"

"Okay," he replied and Rachel stood up and looked back at Madison who was scanning the area, looking for anything which was suspicious.

"Rachel...can you...is that mist?" Madison asked and Rachel nodded, looking at the young woman who had began to panic as the mist descended down onto them. "What's happening?"

"It's the toxin," Rachel informed her intern who began to quickly breath in for air, hyperventilating slightly as she did so, wondering what would happen to her when she breathed in the toxin. "You need to stay calm, Madison. You need to remember that everything is okay and this isn't real."

"I don't know," Madison replied; the toxin hitting her airways and the young boy began to whimper as he looked around, people not seeming real as Rachel nodded and took hold of his hand.

"Rachel...why does your face look odd?" Madison enquired and she watched as Rachel seemed to be moving slowly as she pulled her through the alleyways along with the boy.

"Nothing is wrong with me, Madison," she promised her. "It's the toxin. Just remember that I'll keep you safe, okay?"

"Okay. I get it," Madison quickly spoke back to her as they huddled into the corner once the noise of something loud headed towards them. Rachel placed the young boy underneath her hold, making sure that he couldn't see anything which would happen. Madison looked around as a group of officers ran past them and she struggled to see through the mist which was forming thickly.

"Madison!" Rachel snapped, sensing that her intern was wandering off and following the police, her mind becoming overwhelmed with the mist which was forming. "Madison! Come back here!"

But, her intern wasn't listening. She continued to move down the alley and Rachel sighed once, standing up and then rushing over to her, the young boy still holding tightly onto her hand as she did so.

"Here you are!"

Rachel froze at the sight which she saw, backing up down the alley and keeping the young boy safe whilst Madison screamed at what she saw, her breathing coming out in short pants as he moved over to them, his laugh echoing through her ears as she screeched loudly.

"I've been looking everywhere for you, Mads. Why did you run away like that?" he asked her, still sat on the fire breathing horse whilst Madison's eyes remained fixed on him and Rachel yelled over to her, willing her not to lose sense of what was real.

"He's not real, Madison! None of this is real!"

"But it is, isn't it?" he snapped back at her and she whimpered pathetically, not sure what to believe. Slowly, she felt his hand move down, trying to grab her by the air as she swatted at him. But, he wasn't giving up that easily. His hand wrapped around her wrist, hauling her closer to the horse whilst Rachel moved through her coat pocket, searching for the taser which she always kept on her.

"There's nothing to fear but fear itself," he declared to her, trying to haul her up onto the horse beside him as she continued to struggle, her mind becoming clouded and unsure of what was happening. She continued to yell as his hand wrapped around her upper arm and he bent down, his face inches from hers as he did so.

"I'm not afraid of you!" Madison yelled back at him.

"You look petrified," he commented. "Jonathan would be worried for you."

"I don't care," Madison snapped. "Get off of me!"

"Crane!" Rachel suddenly yelled, realising that her intern needed help as Jonathan's hand moved into her hair, grabbing it by the scalp as she did so.

"No!" Crane snapped back. "It's Scarecrow!"

But, Rachel didn't even answer him back as she allowed the electric shock to bolt from her taser and it hit Crane's body, sending pulses around him as the horse bolted and galloped off with him into the night. Madison collapsed onto a heap on the floor, coughing and spluttering as Rachel rushed over to her, realising that she wasn't of sound mind and she almost looked unconscious.

"Madison, stay with me," she urged the young woman. "You're going to be okay, trust me."

"I...Rachel..."

"Okay, calm down, take deep breaths," she urged her. "He's gone. He can't hurt you anymore."

Madison nodded, allowing Rachel to guide her back to the hiding spot which they had been in and they settled there, waiting for someone to come and rescue them. It wasn't long before the saviour came in the form of the Batman and Rachel sighed with relief as she looked on to him and he looked back to her, telling her to stay where she was until he had the place cleared out or an officer came past.

She did as she was told; her breathing continuously on edge as they sat and waited for someone to save them.

...

"Madison!" Rachel snapped as soon as she saw her intern walking through the corridor of City Hall, her coat in her hands as she did so. She held her satchel by her side and on her shoulder as she walked down towards the office where her mentor was supposed to be.

"What are you doing here?" Rachel asked and Madison's brows furrowed as she looked at her. She didn't think that she was supposed to be elsewhere.

"I've come back to work," Madison informed her. "Am I not supposed to be here?"

"Well...if you want to be then fine...we just thought that you'd need some more time," she said and Madison shook her head, following her into the office. Rachel shut the door softly and Madison deposited her bag onto the floor.

"I don't need time," she promised Rachel. "What am I supposed to do? I can hardly mope around my house and cry after Jonathan, can I?"

"We just thought that it might be hard on you," Rachel replied. "I lost Carl, too. I know how it feels to lose someone who you care about."

"Mr Finch didn't end up being a psychopath, did he?" Madison checked and she sat down on her seat, sighing and placing her head into her hands. "Jonathan...I need to be out, Rachel. I can't sit at home and think about him. It's driving me mad."

"Okay," Rachel agreed. "But, he's still out there, Madison."

"I know," Madison simply replied with a nod. "I know he is."

...

Jonathan was slightly shocked if he had to be honest with himself. He had expected Madison to never emerge from her house after a week. He was sure that he had hurt her and she wouldn't want to surface, but, she shocked him. One of his men had informed him that she had gone back to work whilst he sat in the small room and fixed his toxin so that he could sell it. He needed to make a living somehow if he was to stay on the streets of Gotham.

But, he wanted to see Madison again. He didn't need to. He just wanted to.

...

A/N: So, Jonathan is still on the loose. Not much interaction with him and Madison, but, I've got it coming up when he strikes again. Until then, I would like to thank tamster127, MCRDeathNoteLover, kenzerooni, Noniona, Fangirl-Karla, Teacupful, Guest, ZabuzasGirl and reverie-scriptor for reviewing.

Let me know what you all think!


	27. Chapter 27

"The giant bat creature is still going around then," Madison commented the next day when she sat beside Rachel in the courtroom. The elder woman had gone into the vacant space in a feeble attempt to prepare writing her notes for the day, but, it was becoming harder on her when she knew who Batman really was. She knew what he was doing every night when he rushed around Gotham. Gotham needed him. She just hoped that he knew what he was doing. There was also to be the appointment of the new District Attorney soon and Rachel was wondering who that would be.

"Hmm," Rachel simply agreed as Madison sat beside her, showing her the newspaper which her brother had shown her that morning. Rachel's eyes quickly glanced onto it before she went back onto her writing.

"They've installed a brand new light for him and everything," Madison informed her, sitting back and crossing her legs under the table before grabbing her own file from her satchel and flicking through it. "Don't you wonder who it is?"

"Whoever he is," Rachel spoke lowly, dropping her pen and turning to look at her, "he's helping Gotham. The crime rate is still high, but, who knows, maybe in a couple of years it could be down."

"Don't you think that he's a bit crazy though?" Madison asked, shrugging nonchalantly as she did so. "He runs around in a bat suit and he risks his life to protect people who couldn't care less if he died."

"Someone would care," Rachel said lowly, not wanting to think about the consequences if Bruce died. She couldn't bear it. "There's always someone out there to care."

"I suppose so," Madison agreed, knowing that she was talking sense. There would always be someone to care about someone else. Even if the feeling isn't reciprocated, it would still be there. She slowly folded the paper into half, dropping it back into her bag as his photo stared up at her on the way down. She gulped once, forcing it into her bag and then closing the lid, going back to her work with the distraction of his face still haunting her.

...

"I've told you before," Danny snapped as he sat in the cruiser, his partner beside him as he gnawed on the sandwich which his mother had prepared for him earlier that morning. "Madison is too young for you."

"Three years," Michael informed him and Danny rolled his eyes, driving slowly through the streets of Gotham as he did so. He shook his head, hearing a slight interference coming up on the radio. He remained silent as he pulled up to the red light and Michael continued to chomp loudly. "I mean, come on mate. She's a good looking bird."

"Did you just refer to my sister as a bird?" Danny snapped quickly and Michael shrugged whilst Dan sighed, rubbing his eyes as he waited for the light to turn green. "You're lucky that I like you."

"I don't know why you're being so protective. You know that I'd be nice to her. I mean, I'm a cop, Danny boy, not some psychotic doctor," he replied and Danny snorted loudly, shaking his head as he placed the cruiser into drive and slowly crawled through the traffic.

"You'd stand a better chance if you were the psychotic doctor," Danny informed him and Michael's eyes widened at what he heard. He quickly pushed a hand through his blonde hair, crumpling the cellophane which his sandwich had been wrapped in before he threw it into the pack up box and then under his seat.

"What does that mean?" Michael wondered from his partner. "She still hung up on Crane?"

"I don't know," Danny admitted with a shrug. "Whenever I see her she looks like a zombie. It's like she can't shake him no matter how hard she tries."

"That's grim, buddy," Michael shook his head softly. "I'm probably best off leaving well alone then."

"Probably," Danny agreed. "I'd hate to snap your legs in half for even attempting to date my sister."

"Ha, ha," he replied in a drawl. "I'd like to see you try."

Danny snorted, closing his eyes before the station called into their cruiser and asked if they were in the area of a disturbance. Michael responded whilst Danny sighed, picking up the pace as they rushed through the streets of Gotham to the site which they needed to be at.

Danny climbed from the car, his hand moving to the gun in its holster before he nodded at Michael and the two men looked down the small alleyway where the disturbance was supposed to be. Danny slowly moved forwards, listening as voices seemed hushed and Michael lurked back, his gun already out and in his hands, waiting to be used.

They reached the end of the first alleyway, slowly noticing that there was nothing. Danny hesitantly moved his head around the corner where the darkened street was hard to see down. He made out soft murmurings of someone and his eyes scanned around as they laid on the floor, quivering and whimpering whilst three men stood over them and another two stood opposite.

"Our boss said that the drug isn't bad," one spoke through the gum which he was chewing and a figure chuckled. Danny struggled to see the one who had laughed, but, his face was known, even covered in the burlap mask.

"Isn't bad?" he checked, his voice still easy to depict even under the mask. Danny quickly drew his gun out, turning back to Michael and motioning for him to call for back up. "I'd say that is quite an understatement, wouldn't you?"

"Well, the effects are a bit annoying. Couldn't you make them suffer in silence?" the other one spoke, also chewing gum loudly.

"How would you then know that they are suffering?" he simply wondered back and the two men looked at each other, clearly not intelligent enough to keep up with the burlap mask. Danny doubted that anybody would be that intelligent to keep up with him, especially two thugs.

"Well...whatever..." the man spoke back. "Boss says that he wants two more shipments by Friday."

"Usual pick up place?" the man behind the mask sighed.

"I'm guessing so," he responded with a shrug and the masked man clapped his hands together and looked around, knowing that something had changed but remaining ignorant towards it.

"Well, thank you for clarifying," he drawled. "We'd best go before anyone suspects anything."

Danny felt his heart beat fast before he looked at Michael who shrugged at him, knowing that they should do something before the men dispatched. But, they also knew that they were outnumbered. Danny took the lead, adrenaline pumping through his veins as he moved outside of his hiding spot, his gun held firmly in his hands.

"Freeze!" he demanded from the men. The two mobsters turned around, drawing their guns out, but the mask stopped them before they could do anything.

"Don't shoot," he demanded the two men, stepping over the quivering man on the cold concrete and looking over to Danny, his eyes glittering with amusement as he did so. "Daniel, isn't it?"

"Officer Walters to you, Crane," he snapped back and Jonathan chuckled, pulling the mask from over his head and handing it to one of his thugs who took it, storing it in the boss' suitcase. Jonathan remained stood where he was, folding his arms across his chest with purpose. He continued to smirk, his plump lips pushed together as he studied Danny.

"Tell me, how is Madison?" Crane wondered and the men all looked at each other, not lowering their guns as Michael eventually took the plunge, standing by his partner's side and waiting to take Crane down.

"Better off without you," Danny snapped. "She's none of your concern."

"Oh, she really is," Jonathan chuckled. "You see, I never really got the chance to say goodbye to her earlier."

"She said your little friend had come out to play," Danny informed him and Jonathan chuckled as the voice in his head stirred. "You're ill, Crane. You're not going anywhere. None of you are."

"And how have you jumped to that conclusion?" Jonathan asked him and Danny gulped as his two men pulled out their guns, holding them tightly in their hands whilst Jonathan looked at Danny, expecting his question to be answered. "You see, there are five of us...well six, but he's not really conscious and there are only two of you."

"We've called for back up, Doc," Michael shouted out.

"Well, we'd best act quickly," Jonathan declared and stepped back, whispering to the men as the two cops remained shaking on the spot, aware that if one of them fired they'd be shot back. But, if they waited then they'd be shot point blank.

"Leave Walters. Kill the other one," Jonathan informed them as they formed a line, shielding him from gunfire as they began to shoot and he headed back to the small car, shaking his head to himself as he picked up his briefcase on the way.

...

Madison quickly parked her car in the hospital parking lot before she rushed to the ER, giving her brother's name and being told that he had been moved to a ward after they had declared that he was going to be fine. He hadn't suffered any critical damage. Just a shot in the leg. Madison had gulped when they told her that. Being shot in the leg sounded pretty critical to her. But, she was no doctor.

"Jesus Christ, Daniel Matthew Walters!" Madison snapped as soon as she saw her brother laid in the bed. Her parents were sat beside his bed as she jumped onto the side of it, wrapping her arms around his neck as she did so. Her mother continued to sob whilst her father looked at her disapprovingly. "You had to go and get yourself shot, didn't you?"

"Yeah," he said, rubbing his hand down his neck, trying to stay strong as he thought about Michael who was in intensive care. He looked at Madison whilst she looked over to her parents, her father glaring at her as he did so.

"Are you going to ask who did this to him?" he wondered from his daughter whilst her mother hit him on the arm, glaring at him with disgust.

"None of this is Madison's fault, Geoff," she spat. "You're angry."

"Mom, dad," Danny called out to them before they began to bicker. "Why don't you two go for a coffee? I need to talk to Madison."

"Come on," their mother snapped as she took hold of her husband's hand and pulled him out from the ward. Madison released Danny from her hold and sat in the spare seat, looking at him and not needing an answer. She knew what had happened.

"What was he doing?" she whispered and Danny sighed. Of course she would know.

"He was in the middle of negotiating a deal to sell the toxin he had made," Danny told her and she shook her head, looking away and trying to push the tears from her eyes. "He had two other's with him and they were talking to two other mobsters. Michael and I intercepted them...he...he walked away whilst the other four shot at us."

"Jesus," Madison drawled out again, leaning back and dropping her head into her hands whilst Danny watched her. "He's...I don't know, Dan..."

"He got away," Danny continued to tell her the story. "Michael's in a worse state than me. They only hit me in the leg. He bore the brunt of it and I don't...we don't know if he'll pull through..."

"Oh God," Madison shook her head. "How could he do this?"

"He's not right in the head, Madison," Danny whispered harshly to her. "I need to you to make sure you stay safe whilst I'm in here, okay?"

"Why?"

"He asked about you," Danny spoke quickly. "He said how he never got a chance to say goodbye to you and how you're his concern. I don't trust him, Madison."

"He wouldn't hurt me," Madison said confidently. "I don't think he would."

"You don't know for certain and neither do I," Danny growled lowly to her and she looked at him with wide eyes, seeing the determination in her brother's voice. But, she wasn't going to let him get away with this. Jonathan didn't have the right to.

...

"You're going to be around here somewhere," Madison whispered as she stepped out from her car, making her usual trip to the convenience store like she did every night. And every night she felt herself being followed. She didn't know what to think, but, she kept her head down and said nothing about it. She was probably paranoid, yet a part of her thought that she wasn't. She didn't know.

She bought the usual chocolate and dumped it in her bag, moving onto the cold Winter street and pulling her coat collar up as she walked back to her car in the parking lot, looking around and instantly dropping her hand into her pocket where the gun sat. But, she didn't climb into her car. Instead, she stood outside of it, looking around the empty parking lot and to where the dumpsters sat. She calmed her breathing, her neck jutting out as she peered over to the bins.

"I know you're here!" she shouted and she heard him chuckle. He was laughing.

"How did you know?" he asked her, finally emerging from the shadows and she remained by her car, her hand gripping tighter around the gun she had stolen from Danny's bedside table whilst he slept in the hospital.

"I had a feeling," she simply told him as he stood opposite her at the end of her car, leaning against it and folding his arms. He looked even more dishevelled than normal as Madison glanced at the suit which he was wearing. It was a size too big for him and his tie was the red one which he tended to wear quite often. His hair had grown and his glasses looked a little bent.

"Women and their intuition," he rolled his eyes, grinning as he did so.

"I take it that your little friend hasn't come out to play?" she asked and he shrugged nonchalantly, looking around the dark area.

"He's tame for now," he assured her. "I didn't intend for you two to ever have to meet."

"Well, I can't say it was pleasant," Madison told him and he chuckled, knowing that it wasn't.

"So, you called for me to come out. What do you want?" Jonathan asked her breezily and she looked at him with scrunched up features, tapping her foot on the floor out of nervousness.

"You shot my brother, Jonathan," she said and he shook his head, holding a finger up to silence her before she could rant further.

"My men shot him," he corrected her. "I had them shoot him in the leg, Madison. I kept him alive."

"That's not the point," Madison shook her head. "You allowed him to be shot and Michael."

"He isn't my concern. I had the decency to keep your brother alive."

"The decency," Madison spat the words out, shaking her head as she pulled the gun from her pocket, pointing it onto him as Jonathan chuckled and rolled his eyes at seeing the action. Sweat was forming on her forehead even in the cold air and her hands were shaking. He doubted she even knew where the safety lock was on that thing. "Don't you dare stand there and spout your lies to me!"

"I wasn't," Jonathan shook his head. "I was telling you the truth. Your brother just happened to be there at the wrong time."

"It doesn't matter," Madison told him, her throat dry and her voice hoarse. "You're not getting away with it, Jonathan."

"Oh, Madison," Jonathan exasperated her name. "You're not going to shoot me, are you? We both know that you don't have it in you."

"I'd thought about it," Madison admitted to him and he grinned at her. "But, I can't. You're not worth it either. Blackgate doesn't suit me."

"I think the orange jumpsuit would be very fetching," Jonathan taunted her and she turned red, stepping closer to him with the gun and he rolled his eyes. "So, what is the plan?"

"I'm going to call the police," she spoke and Jonathan nodded. "And we're going to stay here like this until they come."

Madison slowly dug around in her free pocket, pulling her phone out again as Jonathan stepped closer and she jumped back from him, her hands shaking as she tried to dial for GPD.

"I'm afraid that your plan isn't well thought out," Jonathan said, quickly lunging forwards, knocking the phone from her hand as it scattered under her car and she glared at him as he raised his hands in surrender.

"Oops," he joked and she moved closer, the gun pressed against his stomach as Jonathan snaked his arm across her waist, pushing her back against the car and towering over her with his lanky limbs whilst she glared up at him, the gun still pressed against his stomach. "Do it, Madison. Go on. I'm not the good Doctor who you thought I was; am I? You know that you want to."

"Don't test me," Madison spat out and Jonathan lowered his mouth closer to her neck, resting his lips just above her coat collar whilst she remained putty in his hands. How he never tired of it.

"Why?" he mumbled against her cold skin. "Scared that you might actually do it?"

"I will," Madison lied to him and he chuckled, his lips moving along her jaw before his finger rested against her lips.

"We both know that you won't, Madison," he whispered, his breath hitting her cheek and tickling her skin. "Your emotions betray you."

Madison remained silent, waiting as Jonathan slowly removed his finger from her chapped lips and tucked her dark curls behind her ear as she felt a drop of moisture hit her cheek and he looked back into her eyes, playing with her hair as her body shook against his.

"I can only imagine how you feel," he whispered softly, "still having feelings for someone like me. It'll make you weak, Madison."

"I'm not weak," Madison shook her head and Jonathan's hand cupped the back of her neck as he bent down to her height.

"Prove it," he said and she knew fully well that he was talking about the gun which she was holding. But, she couldn't. She couldn't kill him and she wouldn't. Jonathan grinned, the soft look back on his pale face as he slowly pressed his lips against hers, pushing his body closer to hers as he did so, the warmth from her feeling slightly inviting. He pulled back after a moment, leaving her lips parted and her breathing unsteady.

"I'll see you later, Madison," he whispered and she remained stood where she was as he kissed her cheek and took off. She watched after him, slowly looking down at the gun before throwing it onto the floor and resting against her car, sliding down it and shaking her head as Jonathan never looked back at her.

...

A/N: Eeee! Another chapter for Tuesday evening! Trying to update as much as possible before I return to another year at university! So, please do let me know what you think so far, hope you're all enjoying. Also, really excited that I got over one hundred reviews! Thanks to everyone who made it possible!


	28. Chapter 28

"Where have you been?" Geoff Walters asked as soon as he saw his daughter walk back into the family home. She dropped her keys into the bowl on the kitchen table before she looked at her father who stood near the kettle, pouring coffee into two cups.

"I just needed some air," Madison lied, still looking like a pale ghost along with feeling everything which she was living was surreal. She remained mute for a second, her shaking hands pulling at the buttons to her coat as Geoff seemed more intent on watching a boiling kettle.

"You shouldn't wandering the streets, Madison," he scolded her slightly and she resisted the urge to roll her eyes. She was pretty safe on the streets with Jonathan ruling them. "Look, I want to apologise...earlier at the hospital-"

"-It's fine," Madison interrupted him and Geoff shook his head at her, turning around as the kettle finally boiled to look her in the eye as she shrugged her coat off, allowing it to rest over her folded arms. "I mean...I dated him, didn't I?"

"No, honey," Geoff said with a sigh, walking over to her and resting his arms around her waist as she dropped her head onto his shoulder. "I was angry that you knew him before. I was angry that a man like him could mean something to you...and seeing you so upset in the past few weeks...well, it pains your mother and me."

"I'm fine," Madison said the lie like a clockwork whilst Geoff inhaled sharply, not believing her one little bit.

"You can't fool me, Madison. I'm your father," he pulled back, looking at her with narrowed eyes and shaking his head quickly as he did so. "You've been detached whenever you're here and you rarely come out of your room unless it is for food or to go to work."

"I'm going to be okay," Madison chose to say to her father, moving over to the fridge and grabbing a bottle of water quickly as she did so. Geoff placed the hot water from the kettle into the cups and pursed his lips, hoping that she was right.

"Honestly, dad," Madison smiled at him, resting her hand onto his arm as she passed him. "I will be fine."

"I hope so, honey," Geoff spoke gently as Madison took her water and coat through the hallway and to the staircase, still reeling from the pressure of his lips on hers. She shook her head, trying to push it from her mind, but, it wasn't possible. Even after all that he had done he was still getting to her.

...

"The usual pick up place has been compromised ever since those cops found us in the alley," Jonathan informed one of his men as he made his way back into the abandoned warehouse which he had holed himself up in. It wasn't entirely pleasant, in fact, it was pretty horrible. He'd been able to get himself a desk along with the equipment he needed to produce his toxin on a smaller scale. An old mattress rested in the corner of the room, a simple white pillow and green blanket covering it.

"What do you want us to tell them?" his thugs asked, his hand stuffing into his pocket and pulling out his packet of chewing gum. Jonathan leant back in his seat, thinking about what to say as he dropped his pen in his hand onto the desk and bit his lip for a moment.

"Tell them to meet by the docks," Jonathan decided. "It was Falcone's ground. No one will go back there, it would be considered too dumb."

"Then why are we going there?" he replied and Jonathan had to contain his blue orbs to stay in their normal position as they were urged to roll back into his head.

"Reverse psychology," Jonathan simply said. "You don't need to worry about that. Now, go, I have work to do."

Jonathan watched as his men slammed the door shut and he wondered why he'd employed two incompetent goons. Then he reminded himself that it was either them or no one and that made his situation seem increasingly worse. He needed some muscle, just not the brains. He could deal with that.

Even after the two men had left, Jonathan didn't pick up his pen again. He remained silent and thinking about the events from earlier. Madison was becoming an increasingly intrusive figure into his mind. Sometimes he didn't mind, but, sometimes he did, especially when he was trying to work.

He sighed, tucking his hair behind his ears whilst pushing himself up from the chair.

_She's still there, isn't she, Jonathan?_

Jonathan groaned as the voice came into play and he paced around the room.

"She's becoming a hindrance, I admit."

_I told you. I told you that you were beginning to care for her. I warned you to get rid of her._

"I'm fine," Jonathan admitted, the lie coming into play once again. "I'll deal with it. She's...well...she's not a threat to me and that is the important thing."

_She could be. She could be an indirect threat._

"I don't think so," Jonathan grumbled. "She won't be. She can't be."

...

"I heard about your brother. How is he?" Rachel asked and Madison nodded before sitting down in her seat.

"He's fine," she said. "He was shot in the leg...well...Jonathan...apparently spared him."

"It was on the news," Rachel told her and Madison sighed to herself, pushing her hair out of her line of vision before she looked across to Rachel who was sat at her desk and focusing on the work in front of her. The new DA was starting the following week and Rachel was given the task of working with him. That meant leaving Madison to her own devices.

"My mom said that it was this morning," Madison grumbled when she spoke. "She said there was a nice five minute article about how he's still on the streets and how he could be searching for me. I mean, I doubt that."

"I don't," Rachel said, moving around on her chair and looking for the piece of paper which she had just lost. "Crane isn't mentally stable, Madison. To him you're...well...I can't explain it. I don't think he will easily let you go."

"Well...he has bigger things to worry about," Madison shrugged nonchalantly. "Like trying to sell his toxin."

"Just be careful," Rachel warned her. "I don't want you to get hurt. He hasn't made contact, has he?"

"No," Madison lied a little too quickly which made her sound slightly suspicious. Rachel picked up on it, twirling her pen in her hand as she found her piece of paper. She looked at the intern with concerned and narrowed eyes as she did so. Something about her tone didn't convince her.

"You'd tell me, wouldn't you, Madison?" Rachel checked. "If he tried anything?"

"Of course," Madison nodded and stood up, plastering the usual smile onto her face as she did so. Turning her back to Rachel, she opened up the drawer to the filing cabinet and her shoulders slumped as she stared into it, not sure what she needed. Rachel's eyes remained fixed on her back, her features scrunched up and her stomach sinking as she looked at her. She couldn't force Madison to tell her anything. She just wished that she wouldn't hide things.

...

"Have you seen the papers this morning?" Rachel shrieked three weeks later. Harvey Dent had joined the team of DA's, taking the lead and proving to be very passionate over his role. Madison had been left to her own mind, looking through cases and attempting to become more independent on her own. "The Batman caught him last night."

"Who?" Madison asked and Rachel dropped the paper onto Madison's desk, the photo of Crane staring up at her whilst she sat back in her seat, unable to believe what she was reading

"Yeah," Rachel spoke. "It seems that he was in the middle of some deal which was going on and the Batman interrupted it. He's holed up at the police station now and calling a lawyer. I don't know why, even they can't get him off of this charge."

"I...I...who is prosecuting him?" Madison spat out and Rachel arched a brow, folding her arms before looking around her office.

"Harvey and myself, I imagine." She said and Madison shook her head at her.

"I want to be on the case," she spoke quickly which caused Rachel to sigh and shake her head. "Please, Rachel."

"Why?" Rachel asked her. "Why are you torturing yourself like this, Madison?"

"I'm not," Madison lied to her. She knew that she was torturing herself, but, she didn't care. Something inside of her told her that she had to see him again. One last time before he was put into Blackgate or Arkham. She looked at it like closure. Rachel looked at it like obsession.

"No," Rachel said decisively, holding her hands up and then sitting in her seat. "I'm not letting you near him, Madison. It's for your own good."

...

Madison never did what was good for her. That much was apparent. She wasn't the type of person to listen to other people when she had her mind made up on what she wanted. And what she wanted right then was to go and see Jonathan to give her some closure. She wanted to hear him tell her that she meant nothing. She wanted him to tell her to go and move on from him. Maybe then she'd finally feel like her old self. Jonathan Crane had gotten to her in a way which she had never thought possible. He'd controlled every aspect of emotion which she had felt and she was tired of it. She just didn't know how to get over it.

"I hate to say that the orange jumpsuit isn't very fetching," Madison spoke when she saw him enter the room, flanked by two guards before they sat him down on the seat opposite her and he looked at her visitors badge as the guards nodded at her and took off, standing behind the door and giving her and Crane some time alone. He was cuffed, which was to be expected. He was a psychotic criminal, after all.

"Orange was never my colour," Jonathan simply smirked back to her, looking down at the garment which he was wearing before he found her wide orbs and his lips fell into a thin line whilst looking at her. "What are you doing here?"

"I came to see you."

"Evidentially," Crane drawled with a flick of his tongue across his lips and he leant forwards, resting his hands onto the table as his eyes burned into her. "What do you want, Madison? Is the DA's office trying to cut me a deal?"

"Ha," Madison was unable to hide the snort which escaped her lips and echoed through the room whilst Jonathan glared dangerously at her. "Don't be ridiculous. They'll never cut you a deal, Jonathan. You're one of Gotham's most wanted."

"Looks like Gotham has me then," Jonathan concluded, holding his cuffed hands up into the air as evidence whilst Madison looked at them and nodded. "So, I'll ask again, why are you here?"

"And like I said," Madison whispered, "I came to see you."

Jonathan digested her words for a moment, crossing his legs awkwardly before he managed to scrape his black hair from his face and Madison remained mute, not knowing what to say to him or what to do. He shook his head after studying her easily readable face and he groaned softly, tilting his head back as he did so.

"Oh, Madison," he drawled her name. "You really are a gluten for punishment, aren't you?"

"Probably," she admitted to him, glancing down into her skirt covered lap whilst Jonathan looked around the room, knowing that people were clearly watching from behind the glass of it. Privacy was not something the corrupt of Gotham were entitled to. "I guess I just had to see you one last time."

"One last time?" Jonathan asked her and she nodded.

"I don't intend to be in court when you're there. Rachel has told me that I can't work the case," she explained and Jonathan nodded, knowing that her mentor was looking out for her by keeping her away from Jonathan. It was logical, of course. The man had gotten to her in a way which was distressingly worrying.

"And you don't intend to visit me in Blackgate?" he wondered. "Maybe I'll be lucky enough to get to go back to Arkham. That would be ironic, wouldn't you think?"

"I don't know," Madison grumbled. "It depends what the judge sees as being the best for you."

"Hm," Jonathan simply muttered. "Well, there really is nothing left to say, Madison," Crane shrugged and Madison nodded at him. "Unless you intend to declare your undying love to me before you go."

Madison winced, sitting straight as shivers tickled up and down her spine and her breathing faltered before she stood, picking her satchel up from the floor and hanging it onto her shoulder.

"What good would that do anyone?" she pondered aloud and Jonathan pressed his lips together into a tighter line. He watched as she pushed her hair behind her shoulders and looked back onto him.

"You came here for closure," he whispered to her. "Didn't you?"

"For all the good it did me," she scoffed to herself. "I don't know if it helped or made it worse."

"I know," Jonathan said confidently to her. "You're still in love with me, Madison. It will take a while for you to get over that feeling."

"I'm not denying that," Madison replied. "As long as I do get over it then I'm not bothered. You're never getting out of here, Jonathan. You know that, don't you?"

"Never say never," Jonathan shrugged and Madison rolled her eyes, hoping that he would have something other than that to say to her. Why did she want him to say it? She wasn't particularly sure. Her hormones were raging all over the place that none of it made any particular sense, especially not to her.

"Goodbye, Jonathan," Madison spoke, moving past him, but, he was quicker, grabbing onto her wrist with his cuffed hand as the guards moved quickly into the room, standing by his side and resting a hand onto his shoulder as he and Madison remained mute. The pair of them simply stared at each other for a small amount of time.

"Let her go, Crane," the officer warned Jonathan who slowly dropped her hand from his and he nodded once at her.

"Goodbye, Madison." He said and she quickly rushed from the room, trying to stop herself from feeling any form of emotion as the guards spoke to Jonathan about how he was not to touch visitors. Madison's hand flung to her mouth, hiding the strangled noise which escaped her lips before she rushed from the police station and left Jonathan behind her.

...

A/N: I don't think this is the end of the story, I still have a few more idea to come up yet. Anyway, I'd like to thank kenzerooni, Ariddle-Ascare, Guest, tamster127, ATLAsnaps-fan, ari87 and HeavenlyCondemned for reviewing the last few chapters.

Let me know what you think!


	29. Chapter 29

"So, what time are you going out?" Danny asked Madison as she sat on the bottom step to the staircase, placing her heels onto her feet as Danny stood opposite her, a bowl of pasta in one hand and a fork in the other as he ate his dinner. Madison fiddled with the bow on the bottom of her shoes, willing for it to straighten out and not look wonky as the noise of Danny's chewing echoed through her ears.

"Rachel is picking me up in another ten minutes," Madison mumbled, the idea of going out filling her with dread as she did so.

Four months had passed. Four months had gone and she had been alone. There had been no Jonathan to worry about as he had been locked up in Arkham until he was deemed mentally stable enough to be transferred to Blackgate. The trial had been one of great hype, the doctor who had spent months taunting patients and then trying to hold Gotham to ransom. There was even more hype about whether Madison would be the one prosecuting. Apparently TV companies would have paid to see that. Madison had rolled her eyes at hearing that, thankful that she was nothing to do with it.

But, each day she spared a thought for Jonathan. Jonathan locked in his cell. Jonathan and Scarecrow. Her heart would drop slightly as she thought about what could have been, how she and he could have made something together. But, he'd lied to her and hurt her in ways she never thought possible. Each time the thought came to her head she popped a pill into her mouth, swallowing it wholly to clear her head.

"Mads," she heard her brother complain as she stood up and pulled down the material of her pink dress. "Where's the rest of your dress?"

"Very funny," Madison commented, bending back over to pick her purse up before checking her reflection in the mirror, making sure that her curls stayed in place. They had become a nightmare to control of recent. "Look, tell mom and dad that I've got my keys and I should be back in a few hours."

"You don't intend on staying out long?"

"It's an office party, Danny," Madison complained. "They're not really my thing."

"Nothing seems to be your thing," Danny grumbled and Madison rolled her eyes, checking that she had her purse in her clutch before jabbing her finger at her brother's chest with haste and he held his hands up in surrender.

"Don't start, Danny," she simply warned him and he shook his head at her.

"You know that I'm right," he responded as Madison heard a beeping noise from outside. She reached for the lock, pulling the door open as Danny blocked her way for a moment, looking down at her as he did so. "We're still worried for you, Madison. We don't know what you're thinking and we're wondering if you're still not over Jon-"

"-Don't say his name," Madison pleaded her brother, pushing him out the way with a nudge from her hip. "I'm over him, Danny. He's in an Asylum and I'm out here. I'm over him."

"You're either lying to yourself or to me," Danny whispered at hearing her words and she inhaled sharply, shaking her head at him before she pecked him on the cheek.

"I'll see you later."

...

"He's been looking at you all night," Rachel informed Madison as the two women stood by the bar, a champagne flute in Rachel's hand and a glass in Madison's, the vodka and coke sitting with a straw inside of it.

"Who is he?" Madison wondered, looking across the room to where the tall blonde stood, his eyes looking at the man who he was talking to, but, he seemed to be trying too hard not to look back across to where Madison stood.

"Do you not pay attention to any of the staff meetings which we're dragged into?" Rachel asked her intern, a sly smirk on her face as she caught the eye of Harvey Dent and then turned to look back at Madison who shrugged and closed her eyes, her straw still sitting in her mouth.

"Not really," she admitted. "I did catch on to the last one though. Someone stole the stapler from Dent's office. I didn't think the budget was so tight that we had to join the criminal elite and steal stationary."

"Your sense of humour is extremely dry," Rachel informed Madison who shrugged again, looking around as her eyes landed back onto the blonde who was looking over in her direction. "He's called Matt. He moved here from Chicago a while back with his parents. He's twenty six...I think..."

"And still living at home?" Madison checked and Rachel looked at her with an arched brow. Madison nodded, knowing that she was pushing on to twenty six. Not many years to go and Danny was basically there.

"Good point," she mumbled.

"It is common knowledge that he's in favour with Dent. He thinks that he's going to be the next big thing," Rachel informed Madison who snorted and shook her head.

"Great, just what we need, another DA with a massive ego."

"How much have you had to drink?" Rachel wondered and Madison turned back to the bar, ordering another drink.

"Not enough," she replied.

"Anyway, he's a good looking boy and he does keep staring at you whenever you're in court. You should talk to him," Rachel urged her as Madison took her drink and swigged it before grabbing another straw from the holder which they were situated in.

"Are you trying to set me up?" Madison checked.

"If it stops you from moping around the office all day, then yes," she confirmed. "Just talk to him, for my sake and his. Then you can see if his ego is as large as you'd like to think."

"Fine," Madison spat out and Rachel nodded, taking her by the arm and dragging her across the empty dance floor. No one was drunk enough to even attempt to step onto that thing just yet.

"Hey, Will," Rachel said to the elder man who had been speaking to Matt whilst Madison stood by his side, feeling his eyes raking up and down her body as she remained focused on Will who greeted her with a quick handshake.

"And Matt," Rachel turned to him, "have you met Madison? She is my protégée, if you like," Rachel joked as Matt held his hand out for Madison. The young woman took it, feeling his fingers squeezing against hers as his gray eyes met her green ones.

"It's nice to meet you," he said, his voice slightly low and deep as he did so.

"Likewise," Madison replied, dropping his sweating hand as he pulled on his tie slightly. She could sense the nervousness inside of him. The sweating and fidgeting of his left foot told her that much. Jonathan never fidgeted. He was always calm and relaxed when around her.

"Will, won't you come for a drink?" Rachel asked and the elder man offered her his arm and she flounced a knowing smile in Madison's direction as she sipped on her alcoholic drink through her straw.

"So, I hear you just moved her from Chicago?" she asked him and he nodded, his hands moving into his pocket to wipe off.

"Yeah," he confirmed. "I decided to come with my parent's. And you're from Gotham?"

"Born and bred," she spoke back to him, looking around as he nodded once, smiling softly as he did so. "I haven't noticed you in the DA's office before," Madison said, deciding it would be easier if she just tried to make conversation. She might even find herself enjoying it.

_Jonathan would be mocking you right now._

Madison ignored the niggling voice in her head as Matt chuckled once, rocking back and forth on his heels as some music picked up the beat and the first drunken DA took to the floor.

"Well, you always look wrapped up in your own business. I asked around the office about you," he admitted, scratching the back of his neck above his white shirt collar and Madison arched a brow.

"Oh yeah?" she checked. "And what did they say?"

"They told me about your relationship with that Doctor guy. About how you're probably still in love with him and just as crazy as he is," Matt said and Madison winced at his words, coughing once and looking away from his kind gray eyes as he realised that he had said the wrong thing. "I mean...what do they know, right? You fell for some psycho who wanted to make everyone run around as scared as headless chickens? He probably manipulated you...so...I mean...I don't think you're as crazy as he is."

_Correction. Jonathan wouldn't be mocking. Jonathan would be sneering along and making sarcastic remarks about how everyone, but himself, is an idiot._

And Madison agreed with the voice. She placed her drink down onto the empty table which they were stood by before she looked at Matt and placed her clutch under her arm.

"I've got to go," she said and motioned to the steps before taking off. Matt remained stood where he was for a moment, watching as she moved up the metal platforms and back onto the outside street of Gotham where she'd call a cab.

He shook his head, realising how stupid he'd been before he raced after her, not sure why he was doing so. He barely knew her.

"Hey!" he shouted as soon as he saw her walking down the street in nothing but the strapless pink dress which she wore. She turned around as he advanced towards her and she folded her arms across her chest.

"What is it?" she asked.

"I'm sorry," he spat out. "I never meant to offend you in any way...I...well...I get nervous when I talk to someone who I like..."

"Like?" Madison chuckled and shook her head. "You don't even know me."

"I know of you," he replied. "I've watched you enough...whoa...that makes me sound like a stalker...but I'm not. I mean I'd like to get to know you. If you'd let me."

"Even though I'm the crazy one?" Madison asked him and he shrugged with vague amusement.

"I'll decide if you're crazy after a date," he told her, feeling more confident than before due to the scotch in his system. "What do you say?"

"I'll think about it," Madison nodded.

"At least come back inside," he motioned over to the club and she shook her head. She wasn't in the mood after his outburst.

"I'm going to go."

"Let me hail you a cab," Matt spoke and basically jumped onto the street to hail it as it pulled up to the curb and he opened the back door for her. She looked at him and smiled as he beamed back at her. "I'll see you around."

"I guess so."

Madison settled herself in the back of the vehicle, giving her address as her niggling voice took over again.

_What would Jonathan say?_

But, it was none of his business.

...

A/N: Another chapter for today. Don't know if they'll be another one, but, we'll see. Do let me know what you think!


	30. Chapter 30

Matt was persistent, Madison would give him that. He was constantly outside of court waiting for her, clutching his folder to his chest as he grinned lazily in her direction and asked what she was doing that night. She found herself making all of the regular excuses. She was busy. She had work to do. She already had plans. In the end she gave in. He'd snuck into her office, pencilling himself into her diary for the Saturday evening. She had to admit that she'd smirked at seeing that, her head shaking from left to right as she met him outside of Dent's office on her way home.

"I decided to take matters into my own hands," he shrugged as she stood opposite him in silence, her brow arched and she chuckled once, looking into his gray eyes as he pushed a hand through his neatly coiffed blonde hair. "Don't tell me that you're busy because I saw that your diary was empty. And it is a Saturday night. No one works on a Saturday night."

"You're pushy, I'll give you that," she nodded and he held his hands up to her, the boyish grin still on his face as she pulled her satchel further up her shoulder and clung onto the leather strap, eyeing him with caution.

"So is it a yes?" he wondered and Madison sighed, flapping her arms by her side as she did so.

"I don't really get a choice, do I?" she taunted him, walking off down the hallway whilst he punched the air with his fist, congratulating himself on his sudden triumph and Madison continued to smile at hearing his gasp of excitement.

...

Jonathan rested on his cot, his hands behind his head and his eyes staring up to the ceiling as his mind continuously raced through everything which it could think of. Books were a scarce thing in Arkham and talking to an intelligent human being was near impossible. Doctor Lyons often came down, offering Jonathan conversation. Well, it was supposed to be therapy, but even he knew the good Doctor Crane was too intelligent to admit that he needed help.

No, Jonathan was counting down the days until he could leave Arkham. At least Blackgate would be a change of scenery. His mind often raced to Madison, her face coming into his vision when his eyes closed and the darkness engulfed him. He wondered what she was doing after five months. He wondered if she'd found anyone else. He doubted it. He had seen the way that she had looked at him. Her eyes were always pleading with none of this to be real, her lips partings as she exhaled her breath and tried to control her normal breathing pattern around him. The effect he had on her was similar to carbon monoxide poisoning which, in turn, was similar to love.

_Love; what a peculiar word that is._

"Isn't it just," Jonathan replied to the voice in his head. Love had never been something he wanted to associate with. He saw it as a weakness. He saw it as something which made people lose their bearings on their own goals. He'd read about people jeopardising everything for that mysterious feeling. He couldn't say that he'd ever felt that way about Madison.

The desire which he had to keep her safe coursed through his body often when he was with her. He didn't want anyone to hurt her and he even came to resent himself when had sprayed her with his toxin. Everything he did was to protect her. He knew that showed that he cared. Sentimental, perhaps.

And he couldn't deny that there had been a physical attraction. He was only a male after all and she had offered herself so willingly to him. She wasn't the abyss of perfect. Far from it. Jonathan didn't really like the fact that her face was still quite chubby and her breasts were extremely small, barely existent. But, who was he to complain?

_I've got to admit. She wasn't the worst looking girl in the DA's office._

"Thank you for sharing that," Jonathan muttered. "She didn't really care too much for you."

_Who does?_

The voice snorted and Jonathan cocked his head to the side, admitting that it had a point.

Four months later

"You're kidding?" Rachel snapped as soon as she saw Madison that morning. The girl shook her head at her mentor, holding her finger up for Rachel to see the rock which sat there and she shrugged whilst Rachel smiled weakly, looking back into Madison's eyes.

"It's a bit soon, isn't it?" she checked and Madison cocked a brow at that. She knew that it was soon. She'd only really just met Matt...but...it felt right. She couldn't explain it. Everything seemed so sudden, but, she was happy. She hadn't been happy in a long time.

"I suppose it is," Madison admitted. "He asked me and I couldn't say no, Rachel. I didn't want to say no."

"I can't believe it," Rachel admitted with a chuckle. "Have you told your parents?"

"Last night," she confirmed. "They think it is a bit hasty, but we're planning to have a long engagement. Danny said that if he had his way then the engagement would last forever."

"Well, I'm happy for you," Rachel nodded before a knock at the door was heard. Dent slowly peered his head through the small gap, looking at the two women who were stood close together, still smiling and looking at the stone on Madison's ring.

"Rachel, we're up in ten minutes," he told her and she nodded before he looked at Madison, handing her the file which he needed her to look at before that afternoon. "Miss Walters, I'd like you to deal with a transfer this afternoon. Do everything in your power to keep this guy in Arkham, okay?"

"Who is it?" Madison asked, flicking through the paper and seeing the name before her heart dropped and Rachel peered over her shoulder, looking at Harvey with a soft and pleading face.

"Harvey," she whispered his name. "Can't you get someone else to deal with this?"

"It's fine," Madison spoke, slapping the file shut and shaking her head at Dent who was looking at her cautiously. "You and Rachel go and deal with Maroni. I'll handle Jonath...I mean Crane."

"Good," Dent said after a moment and Rachel rested a hand on Madison's shoulder before she left the young girl in their shared office. Madison took a deep breath, sitting down at her desk and flicking through the file, checking Doctor Lyons report on Jonathan, insisting that he was a stable individual and a transfer would be best for him to rehabilitate. Madison bit down on her cheek as she read through his notes, making a mental note of what to do once she was in court.

...

Jonathan sighed as he sat beside his lawyer at the defence table, waiting for the prosecuting DA to enter the courtroom as the Judge remained hidden behind in the wings. He tapped his foot against the floor patiently, moving his cuffed hands up to push his glasses further onto his nose.

He looked around the empty courtroom, unable to believe how full it had been the previous time he was there. Reporters and journalists all flocked to get the inside scoop on the insane Doctor. But, times had changed and they were too busy down the hall and watching the new White Knight take on Maroni.

The door swung open after ten minutes and Jonathan sighed, turning in his seat and allowing a smile to spread onto his lips as his lawyer stood up and the young woman pushed her way through the gate, standing opposite him and offering her hand to him.

"Madison Walters," she spoke gently.

"Joshua Charles," he responded. "Pleasure, Miss Walters."

"Likewise," Madison said, feeling Jonathan staring at her as the lawyer sat down at her table, placing her folder down onto it and checking through the paperwork as Jonathan leant across his lawyer, grinning as he watched her.

And then he saw it. He noted the way she lifted her hand, pushing her hair behind her ear as the ruby rock shone into his eye line and the grin fell from his face as he hissed over to her.

"You're engaged?" he snapped and Madison gulped, hiding her hand even though it was too late. Her eyes slowly moved across and fell onto Jonathan's as his lawyer watched the scene before him unfold and Madison nodded.

"It really isn't your concern," she responded and he scoffed before the Judge entered and they both stood to their feet, looking at the elder woman with respect as she sat down and began to proceeding in a monotone voice.

Madison took her time in questioning Doctor Lyon, but, the man remained strong, insisting that Crane wasn't a danger to himself or anyone else. Madison kept pushing, but, she got nothing. In the end she realised that she'd missed out some questions which she was supposed to ask. She guessed that Jonathan's burning stare at her the whole time had made her self-conscious of what she was doing.

She wasn't surprised when the verdict came back. Jonathan was to be transported to Blackgate as soon as possible. Madison tidied her notes away as an officer took Jonathan by the arm and he glared at her, stopping as he passed her table and she looked up at him.

"We need to talk," he told her and she continued to look at him as his eyes remained stern, daring her to challenge him otherwise. She sighed as he left the courtroom and then she quickly made her way back to her office, dumping her notes before heading down into the holding cells and seeing the officer on duty there.

"We can't allow you into his cell, miss," he said to her and she nodded, understanding that it wasn't protocol for that to be done.

"I know that you're not supposed to," she informed him. "But, I'm a DA. He's not going anywhere, officer."

"You want me to lock you in a cell with a man who tried to destroy this city?" the officer checked, looking at her like she was mad and she knew she sounded it. She nodded once and he shook his head again.

"I'll bring him down to the end room. It's an interview room and I can keep watch. That's the best I can offer," he told her and she nodded with a small smile.

Madison waited until the officer told her that she could go in. Hesitantly, she walked into the room, looking on as Jonathan sat down on a chair behind a table and the officer stood outside.

"So, who is the lucky man?" Jonathan asked her, motioning to the ring on her finger.

"He works in the DA's office," Madison whispered to him. "We've been dating for four months."

"Seems a little rushed to me," Jonathan snorted. "I never had you down as the hasty decision making type. He's hardly swept you off your feet."

"How would you know?" Madison asked him, her chin jutting out in stubbornness as Jonathan rolled his eyes.

"I'm a psychiatrist," he hissed. "I know you better than you know yourself."

"You don't," Madison snapped back. "Seriously, Jonathan. You need to pack this in now. I'm happy with Matt."

"Does Matt know that you're on the antidepressants?" Jonathan arched a brow and Madison faltered, stepping back slightly and looking around the room, ignoring the cocky gleam in Jonathan's eye as he folded his arms onto his lap. "I thought not."

"How did you know?"

"You were yawning often during court which is a side effect of them. You've also lost a little bit of weight as your shirt doesn't fit you as much as it should do. Not to mention you look tired and on edge. The latter could be my presence, but I doubt it. They're all side effects of the drug you're on. But, I bet your fiancé doesn't know about the low sex drive which you have because of it," Jonathan declared and Madison shifted around uncomfortably. "Like I said, I know you better than anyone. And I studied in psychopharmacology which does help."

"I've been on them since you were locked in Arkham," Madison admitted in a small voice, forcing herself to look into his eyes. But, he didn't grin like she had expected him to. He didn't do anything. He just sat there and remained emotionless.

"I take it that you think Matt is the one?" Jonathan asked and Madison shrugged.

"He makes me happy," she settled on that answer. "It really is none of your concern, Jonathan."

"You're making a mistake," he warned her and she snorted. "He doesn't make you happy. The drugs make you think that he is. It's a mistake."

"And you'd know about them."

"You're settling for second best."

"Matt is a good and kind man," Madison defended her fiancé. "He's never gone around and tried to destroy a city."

"How do you know?" Jonathan wondered. "I kept my lies pretty well hidden."

"I'm not saying that you didn't," Madison responded, checking her watch. She was due in court in five minutes. "Matt isn't second best, Jonathan."

"Yes, he is," Jonathan responded, the stubborn tone set in his voice. "He's not me."

"No," Madison after a moment of thinking. "He's not. I can't particularly see how that can be a bad thing, though."

"The passion isn't there," Jonathan told her and she rolled her eyes whilst he chuckled. "You'll know about it sooner or later, Madison. You'll become bored of him because he's not me."

"Well, you're not really available, are you, Jonathan?" Madison spat back. "You managed to get yourself locked up in jail for life."

Jonathan took in her words before she shook her head, raising her hands into the air and backing out the room.

"I'm done, Jonathan," she promised him. "There really is nothing more to say."

Jonathan watched as she walked away and made it to the end of the holding cells, rushing up the steps as he remained contemplative.

"No. There's plenty more to say," he mumbled.


	31. Chapter 31

Jonathan remained laid on his new cot in his cell in Blackgate. Luckily for him he didn't have to share with anyone. There was no one to test his patience or ask him dumb questions which he didn't want to answer. Instead his mind kept going back to that red ring on her stupid slim finger. And then he saw her face. Even when he wanted to shake her he couldn't. Her face kept swimming into his image and he wondered how she could truly claim to be happy with someone called Matt. Even his name was winding Jonathan up. And he didn't know why.

_You are too close to her. Even after five months you're still thinking about her and she's moved on._

"She hasn't," Jonathan replied with a shake of his head. "She hasn't moved on from me. I saw the way she looked at me."

_Why do you care if you don't like her? It really is none of your business whose bed she is sleeping in now._

"I don't want to imagine that," Jonathan replied quickly, his eyes closing and his head shaking back and forth, trying to rid the image of Madison with someone else. "I can't imagine it. She won't go through with it. I know that she won't."

_What makes you so sure? You were positive that she wouldn't manage to even move on after you never mind becoming engaged. _

"I never had her down as the stupid type, maybe the type who was naive and too trusting. I'm still shocked that she's survived the DA's office. She seems stronger."

_Maybe she has you to thank for that?_

"Possibly," Jonathan admitted. "I doubt she will thank me for it."

_We could make her._

"Now, now," Jonathan mumbled back.

...

"Hey," Matt cooed as soon as he saw Madison move down the corridors of City Hall. He instantly rushed over to her, his arm wrapping tightly around her waist as his lips descended onto her forehead. "How's my favourite girl?"

"Matt," Madison complained, laughing as his fingers tickled against her side and she sighed, resting against him as she did so and he looked down onto her, his eyes beaming and full of love. Madison caught sight of them every now and then. And every time she did she had to remind herself of how lucky she was. She was lucky that Matt loved her. She was lucky that Matt wanted to spend the rest of his life with her.

The horrible fact was that she had to force herself to remember that she did love him.

"We're at work," Madison informed him. "You can't get lovey dovey in here."

"Aw, you're a spoil sport, Mads," he informed her and she rolled her eyes as she looked back up at him and he allowed his eyes to roam over her, appreciating the red dress which she wore. "Come on, I'll take you out for dinner."

"I can't," Madison said, standing still outside of her and Rachel's office as Matt picked up her free hand and held it tightly in his, swinging it from side to side as he continued to look on at her with his besotted eyes. "I have a case this afternoon and I need to prep for it."

"Okay. I'll go downtown then," he told her and she looked at him, her heart skipping a beat as she heard him speak about going downtown. She knew what he was going for. "See if there are any more apartments which have come up. Did you look at the three brochures which I'd shown you yesterday?"

"Yes," Madison nodded. No. She hadn't looked at them apart from glancing over their covers and noting the prices. Why couldn't she be as dedicated as Matt was? "I'll have another look tonight over dinner."

"Okay," Matt quickly agreed, wrapping his arms around her waist and holding her tightly to him. "I can't believe it. Moving in together and then marriage...it all seems crazy..."

"Yeah," she agreed with a smile. "Crazy indeed."

"Right, I'll see you tonight," Matt kissed her firmly and Madison pulled back after a moment, nodding at him as she did so. Slowly, she pushed her hand into her pocket and pulled out her small jar of antidepressants. She looked at one of them as she dropped it into her hand, her palm shaking as her fingers curled around it and she looked at Matt as he walked down the corridor. Gingerly, she dropped the pill back into its jar and walked into the office.

...

Jonathan had found that he could gain information quite easily through the jail. He knew people who knew people. It also helped that the guard on duty every Thursday night didn't know of Jonathan and his work. He didn't seem to resent him as much as the other guards who still recognised the name Crane and Scarecrow. He'd only just moved to Gotham from Texas.

He'd found out that the guard was quite smart, informing him that he had a degree, but, he didn't have time to find a job he wanted. He needed money to support his young family. And Jonathan had asked him for a favour. Every week he asked him to bring him the marriage pages of the Gotham Times. The wedding articles always did draw a big crowd from the engaged couples of Gotham. And every week he would sit and read it, his eyes scanning dangerously over it to see if her name crept up.

"I don't know why you want those things," the guard named Mark informed Jonathan as he handed him the small cut out from the paper through the cell rails. Jonathan took it, looking through it as he settled down onto the small seat at the desk which he had. It was one of the privileges of being well behaved in jail.

"Personal reasons," Jonathan spoke, flicking through it and scanning for her names. "Lord only knows that I'd go mad in this place if I didn't have these to flick through."

"Are you ever going to tell me who you're searching for?" the guard wondered, chewing his gum as he looked down Row F of the prison wing which was relatively quiet, full of individuals who wished that they could be back out on the streets of Gotham.

"What makes you think that I'm searching for someone?" Jonathan wondered, turning to the next page before his eyes glanced up at the guard who shrugged, smiling lightly as he did so.

"Why else would you want to know anything about weddings?" he asked him. "Is it a girl you knew?"

"Hmm," Jonathan simply mumbled. He resented being polite. Everyone who knew him knew that much. But, it often got him his own way and when that happened then he would continue to put on the facade, making sure that no one ignored him or his commands. It was how he was.

"Hey, it's none of my business," the guard shrugged. "I'm just doing my job."

Jonathan nodded before he scanned down onto the bottom of the page and his chest clenched slightly at what he saw.

Miss Madison Walters married Mr Matthew Bourne.

Jonathan didn't even pay attention to the date of when it happened as he looked down at the other names on the list of those who had married in the announcement column and he felt his jaw clench together, his teeth gritting together before he slowly tore the paper into two. She'd done it. She'd gone and married him in less the seven months.

What was there to it? He couldn't do anything. He was locked away in Blackgate and it wasn't like he even loved her. He knew that he didn't. He also knew that she didn't love this Matthew. She would be fond of him, yes. She may even come to see him as someone she could grow to love. Jonathan shook his head again, his elbows resting on the writing desk as his shoulders slumped downwards.

He was pretty sure that their marital bliss wouldn't last for more than three months.

...

And when was Jonathan wrong? Two months and six days had passed with Madison being married to Matt and they were already in their first full argument about how Madison hadn't told him that she was on antidepressants. She'd insisted that it hadn't been a big deal as she flung the blanket over the new sofa which they'd just bought for their apartment. Matt had been stood on the other side of the room, unable to multi task and so he put all of his efforts into yelling at Madison.

Needless to say he slept on the couch that evening.

"It really is nothing important," Madison drawled as soon as she saw him the next morning. The pair of them had changed separately, ready for work as they sat down on the wooden tables in the small kitchen, pouring cereal into their mouths as they did so. "I went onto them as soon as...well..."

"As soon as you found out that your ex was a nutter?" Matt checked and Madison nodded once in agreement.

"It was...well...a bit of a hard period," Madison whispered. "I didn't tell you because I stopped taking them a few months ago."

"So why are you back on them now?" Matt asked her and Madison sighed, tucking her hair behind her ear as she did so. Why was she taking them now? Why was she feeling so depressed when the man sat opposite her wanted to do nothing more than make her happy? She guessed that it was one of those strange questions which she would never be able to answer. She stared at Matt for another moment before shrugging.

"I don't know," she admitted and Matt ran his hands down his cheeks. "I love you, Matt. You know that I do."

"But, it's not enough?" he checked. "It's not enough that you have to take pills to make yourself love me?"

"It's not like that," Madison denied. "It's work...it's all stressful and then moving in here...having a mortgage...it got to me. Honestly, that's all it is."

"So, it's nothing to do with Crane?" he asked and Madison arched a brow, sipping on her orange juice as his hand moved down the purple tie which he wore.

"I haven't seen Jonathan in months," Madison whispered. "You know that."

"It doesn't mean that you don't think about him," Matt replied to his wife and she stood up, picking up their cereal bowls and moving over to the sink, placing them into the soapy water as she did so.

"We're not having this discussion," she hissed at Matt. He picked up the remaining glasses and placed them by her side before he picked up the tea towel and began to dry the wet dishes.

"Well, you said you went onto them because of him. I wondered if you'd gone back to them because of him," Matt informed her and she shook her head, releasing the water down the plughole.

"We're going to go to work and then come home and discuss this," Madison informed her husband as she grabbed her satchel and folders and Matt shrugged into his jacket, nodding once in agreement.

"Fine," he sniped, grabbing onto his car keys. "But we will talk about it, Madison."

Oh, she had no doubt they would.

...

A/N: Counting down the days until Jonathan is out of jail again! Cannot wait indeed! Thank you to all of my reviewers as per usual and please do let me know what you think!


	32. Chapter 32

"You've been quiet all day," Rachel observed and Madison looked at her for a fleeting moment before dropping her gaze back onto the paperwork in front of her. Half past three had just struck on that Friday afternoon and she knew that it wasn't long until she could go home. It was sad, really, she could go home early on a Friday but she didn't want to. She knew that Matt was still mad with her. Their argument the previous night had exploded into something which Madison didn't even think possible.

He'd even walked out the door. She'd thrown their glass vase at it after that, a fit of rage endearing her as she stormed about the apartment, cushions being thrown and plates left smashed. Matt had returned home later on in the evening as she sat in bed, the covers pulled up to her chin and she heard him whisper in complaint at the mess. He didn't even bother to tidy it up. He'd curled himself on the sofa, listening to see if Madison would come out to him.

She didn't. And he didn't move to her. Neither one of them did anything. Madison knew she was as stubborn as a mule - her father had told her multiple times. She insisted that she wasn't the one who did anything wrong. He'd yelled in her face how she was just using him to get over her crazy ex-Doctor. He'd even gone as far as to suggest that she loved him more than she did her own husband. Madison had yelled back, of course, defending her corner.

But, Matt didn't listen to her. He'd hit the nearest bar and began to drink until the early hours of the morning.

"I'm busy," Madison mumbled in response to Rachel's statement whilst the elder woman remained mute for a moment, not focusing on the case coming up but instead on her intern's face. She glanced down onto Madison's hands for a second, seeing the red marks there as she lifted them to her face, shaking as she scratched her cheek.

"What the hell happened to your hands?" Rachel barked at her and Madison looked, instantly hiding them even thought it was too late. She sniffed once, rubbing her hand under her nose as she remained glaring down onto her desk.

"I dropped a plate," she said, conviction lacking in her voice as she finally broke again, the tears flowing out from her and she dropped her head onto the desk, her shoulders uncontrollable as her noises echoed the room and Rachel stood up quickly, walking over to her desk and bending by her side, one hand resting on the arm of the chair and her other hand holding the girl's shoulders.

"Madison," she whispered. "What is it? You can tell me. You can talk to me."

"Matt," Madison muttered, lifting her head up and wiping her eyes whilst Rachel rubbed her hand up and down Madison's bare upper arm and the girl played with the hem of the black dress which covered her body, her sniffing echoing through the small office. "He...we've had a row...and...I don't know if...I just...I don't think he wants me, Rachel."

"Nonsense," Rachel instantly said to her, her head shaking back and forth sternly as she did so. Slowly, she pulled herself up from her crouching position, resting the back of legs against Madison's desk whilst she remained wiping her tears. Rachel pulled a tissue from the box on her desk, handing it to Madison before she resumed with her speaking.

"Matt loves you, Madison," Rachel promised her. "Couples have rows every day and then they make up. They happen. You've got to trust me on this. Matt would never just up and leave because the going gets tough."

"You don't understand," Madison shook her head at Rachel who arched a brow. "The row wasn't about what curtains to have."

"Well, what was it about?" Rachel shrugged and Madison's laughter rang of one of shrill disbelief, her body still shaking as she did so.

"The usual," Madison said. "He's always going to be there...just waiting to ruin anything which I have. And I let him. I let him get to me even though he's locked away and never coming back out. I still do it."

"Crane," Rachel muttered without a moment's hesitation and Madison nodded, bending down and into her bag, handing Rachel the bottle of antidepressants which she had been prescribed. She looked at the label as she turned them in her hands and sighed. "How long have you been on them?"

Madison shrugged. "Too long for me to remember exactly how many days. I started as soon as Jonathan...well...I found out that he wasn't really my Jonathan."

"And Matt found out?"

"I'd stopped taking them for a while," Madison bit down on her bottom lip. "And then I started. I don't know why...it was just one morning when I woke up and saw Matt beside me...something about seeing him made me just...I can't explain it."

"I'm taking it that he doesn't approve?" Rachel checked and Madison snorted, a frantic hand running down her hair.

"He says that I should have told him. We're married and I shouldn't be keeping secrets from him."

"He has a point."

"And then he said that he thinks I'm taking them because I can't get over Jonathan. He said that he felt second best to some nutcase. I...I didn't know what to say, Rachel. I didn't know if it was true...I mean, why else would I be taking them?"

"No," Rachel snapped commandingly at her. "You don't want him, Madison. He's a criminal. He's a locked away criminal who left you in pieces. You know that, don't you? He's not capable of loving you."

"I know," Madison whispered.

"Matt. Matt is real. He's the one you married. He's the one who has made you laugh the past few months. I've never seen you as happy...well...I did when you were with him...but, that's not the point. Matt is here and he's not. You know all too well about having someone hurt you. Matt's definitely not like that."

...

"You came home early," Matt spoke as he dropped his keys down onto the small table which sat by the door besides Madison. He looked over to his wife, seeing her sat on the edge of the sofa, her hands clasped together and her eyes stained a red colour whilst she looked over to him.

"I thought you would," Madison mumbled and he shrugged, loosening his tie as he moved into the kitchen, pulling the fridge open and searching for a beer whilst Madison stared ahead at the blank TV screen.

"I had work to do at the office," Matt responded, swigging the alcohol.

"We need to talk."

"Do we?"

"You know we do. Sit down, Matt," Madison demanded him and he took a seat on the armchair, his hand pushing through his blonde hair and his other hand holding onto the can of beer as he looked at her with expectancy.

"Do you want the truth?" Madison asked him and a part of him began to break down. Did he want the truth? He was always asking for it in court, always pleading for people not to lie. But, his own marriage was a different circumstance. If the truth hurt him, if the truth took Madison away from him, then no, he didn't want the truth.

"You're going to give it to me regardless," Matt decided to choose them words and Madison nodded once in agreement. He'd got that right.

"I loved Jonathan," she spat out and he winced, closing his eyes. He knew that. Everyone in the office knew that. When he'd first moved there he thought that maybe it was nothing but a passing fling between her and the Doctor. Apparently he didn't see her as she saw him.

"Tell me something that I don't know," Matt snorted and she nodded.

"A part of me will always love him," she spoke and he flinched again. "He was the only person who I cared for and after him...well...I never tried to move on. I never tried to be how I was. He'd...God, it sounds melodramatic and pathetic, but, he had broken my heart. He'd hurt me in ways I never thought possible. And...yet...I know that I can't hide the fact I still love him."

"And I needed to hear that, did I?" Matt wondered and Madison sighed.

"Yes," she assured him. "And when I went onto the pills I thought that I needed them. I thought that they helped keep me sane and then you came along. You came along with your...flowers delivered every day...baskets of cookies from the bakery...your constant emailing and hounding me for a date," Madison smiled and Matt rolled his eyes, a small smirk on his face as he thought back to that. "And I thought that maybe it was possible for someone to still want me. For someone to want someone who was messed up by Jonathan. You made me happy, Matt. You know that you did."

"Just not happy enough, huh?" Matt asked and she shook her head.

"I don't know why I took them. I seriously have no idea. All I know is that I don't want it come between us. I don't want to lose you over a bottle of prescribed drugs."

"It's deeper than the drugs, Mads," he replied and she nodded.

"But I love you," she assured him. "You're the one who I want and need, Matt. Not him. He's not here...and what he did...how can I forgive him? You've done nothing but love me and I've been stupid enough to almost throw it away. I don't want him or anything else to come between us."

"I wish...I wish I understood you, Madison," he mumbled, slowly standing up and then settling himself by her side, his hands clasped together as she leant closer to him, slowly moving her arm under his to take hold of his hand and he looked to the side where she sat. "You're a complicated little thing."

"I know," she mumbled, her head resting on his shoulder. "Just don't leave me."

"Madison," he sighed loudly, kissing the top of her head and resting his free hand over their entwined ones. "I'm not going anywhere. I promise."

...

Seven months had passed since Madison and Matt had argued. Seven whole months and Jonathan was still laying on his cot in Blackgate. Time seemed to go by slowly and Jonathan wondered if parole would be coming up for him soon. He chuckled at the thought, knowing that they were probably never going to let him out. He shook his head as he thought about it, wondering what Gotham was like on the outside world. He often did that. Allowing his mind to drift to scenarios which would never happen was a pastime. He'd even dreamt of himself being the one to marry Madison.

How strange that was.

And then, one frightful day, he ended up with a cellmate.

Mark had been by earlier in the day to check on the inmates before he broke the news to Jonathan.

"They want me to share a room with someone who ended up being caught for stealing a TV?" he checked with Mark, the roll of his eyes unable to be contained before he pushed his glasses further onto his nose. "Are they trying to kill off my brain cells?"

Mark had chuckled at hearing Crane, knowing that he didn't like people very much. He rarely associated with anyone, preferring the company of his own mind. Mark had often wondered why he stopped wanting the marriage section of the newspaper. He'd tried to press him about it, but he wouldn't budge. He kept on remaining mute and answered with witty comebacks.

"I'll be back this afternoon with him, Crane. Don't worry, I'll find you a decent novel so that your brain cells don't die," Mark assured him, moving back down Row F of Blackgate whilst Jonathan went back to closing his eyes and thinking.

Sure enough, the afternoon came around and the cell door opened, Mark appearing at it with another guard and a tall man with short greying hair and wonky teeth as he looked on at Jonathan. The guards walked away, not caring for introduction after Mark had given Jonathan a look as if to warn him to play nice.

"They tell me you're Jonathan Crane," the man spoke, his accent sounding southern and Jonathan nodded.

"They haven't given me the pleasure of your name," Jonathan responded and the man grinned, instantly jumping onto the top bunk, claiming it for his own and Jonathan glared at the posts above him.

"Martins. Boris Martins," he spoke back. "I'm only here by default. Stupid little DA managed to get me on a charge which I didn't commit."

"Did they?" Jonathan wondered, bored already as he felt a brain cell vaporise.

"Yeah. Stupid stuck up bitch kept on asking me questions which my lawyer hadn't prepared me for. Said they had my fingerprints. Anyone could have gotten them."

"Hmm," Jonathan simply replied.

"Silly cow seemed more interested in playing with the flashy rings on her finger. I'm telling ya, they're getting too stuck up. Thinking that they better than anyone else. I ain't 'avin it."

"Well, there really isn't anything which you can do about it," Jonathan muttered under his breath before thinking about what the man had just said.

"The DA," Jonathan called out after a moment of silence. "Did you hear her name?"

"Yeah. She introduced herself. Madison Bone or something like that. Right little Madame."

Jonathan grinned at hearing that.

"It's Bourne," he corrected the man who arched a brow.

"You know her?"

"Very well," Jonathan confirmed with a smirk, not intending to reveal his relationship and the man snorted, rolling his eyes as he did so, thinking that Jonathan had been prosecuted by her too.

"Well, she's a right bitch, ain't she? Standing there all prim and proper, smiling sweetly at Judge like butter won't melt. I'm telling ya, I feel sorry for that kid growing in her stomach."

Jonathan froze, his eyes opening wide and his brows furrowing together as he climbed from his cot, standing tall and looking at the man laid above him as he turned his head to look back at Jonathan who had his hands resting on the side of his cot, trying not to stumble at the news he had just heard.

"What did you say?" Jonathan wondered, his voice eerie and soft.

"Well, she's pregnant alright," he shrugged. "Either that or she's extremely fat...looks like she's ready to burst any moment. Red dress was practically being torn to shreds by her. Reminds me of the Hulk...without the bump though...I'm guessing she would have a smokin' body."

Jonathan remained silent, backing away until he sat himself at the desk and the man swung his legs over the cot, looking at Jonathan with intrigue.

"So what do you have going on with the DA?" he enquired. "You used to bang her or something?"

"Or something," Jonathan mumbled. Their relationship wasn't solely based on him 'banging her'. Although it wasn't a bad part.

"Bad luck," the man shrugged nonchalantly. "Looks like she's moved on."

"Yes," Jonathan mumbled, "doesn't it, indeed."

...

A/N: So, thank you to reverie-scriptor, ATLAsnaps-fan, Mika927, Fangirl-Karla, Guest, tamster127 and MCRDeathNoteLover for reviewing!

Do let me know what you think so far!


	33. Chapter 33

Jonathan remained quiet, wondering how he could get rid of the crazy Boris. The man was testing his patience to the extreme and Jonathan wondered just how much more he could take of it without going crazy himself. He didn't consider himself mentally ill. He just knew that the voice inside of his head needed to be contained. Everyone else wouldn't understand, he knew that much. But, he didn't dwell upon that fact.

Instead, he'd moved on to thinking about Madison whilst Boris informed him of previous jobs which he'd worked on. Pregnant Madison. Happily married and expecting a baby. He rolled his eyes at the mere thought of her stood in the courtroom, her hands clasped onto her enlarged stomach. And then he'd gritted his teeth, wondering how she could have done this to him. And then he'd remember that she had the right to move on. Their relationship had ended the moment he showed her the basement of Arkham Asylum.

She wasn't his anymore.

...

"You look ready to burst any moment now," Rachel informed Madison as the woman waddled into the office, her hand resting on her stomach and her feet killing her from standing in the courtroom for the morning. Maternity leave started as soon as she handed over her final case to Rachel that afternoon. She couldn't wait.

"I feel like I'm ready to burst," Madison clarified, falling into her chair as Rachel smiled.

"How is it going?"

"The morning sickness is still there and I have a craving for crumpets," Madison informed her and Rachel's brow furrowed at hearing that.

"Crumpets?" she checked and Madison nodded before slicing the air with her hand.

"Don't ask," she responded. "I've had Matt making crumpet runs at one in the morning. I'm shocked he can put up with me. I feel so hormonal. One moment I'm fine and then the next I'm in bits and crying. God only knows what type of mother I'll make."

"You'll make an excellent one," Rachel beamed back at her, giving her the assurance which she needed. "It's natural to be nervous about being pregnant, Madison. I've often wondered about it myself."

"Have you?"

"Of course. I'm older than you, Madison," she laughed gently. "I want a family one day."

"I'm sure you'll have one," she promised her and Rachel rolled her eyes at hearing that, shaking her head and standing up, moving around the office hastily as she did so. "Harvey and you look pretty serious."

"I'd like to think we are," Rachel smiled, filing away her past case. "He's a really great guy."

"The White Knight is what they call him. Unless you go down to the station. They have another name for him there."

"So I've heard," Rachel grinned and closed the cabinet, sitting back down and looking upon her work. "Did you hear about the fundraiser for him tonight? He's absolutely petrified of Gotham's elite."

"I can't blame him," Madison said, a snort in her voice as she did so. "I'd be petrified too. They're a tough crowd to please."

"True," Rachel said. "Anyway, we should get on with the briefing and then you can leave and prepare to give birth to my nephew or niece."

"Nephew or niece?"

"I'd like to think that I'm going to be known as Aunty Rachel," she said and Madison bit down on her bottom lip as she heard her speak about her unborn child and what she and Matt had discussed the previous day.

"Actually, Matt and I have a proposition for you," Madison informed her. "We'd like you to be a godparent."

"Me?" Rachel checked and Madison shrugged.

"We've known each other for ages, Rachel. I consider you more than my mentor now," Madison admitted and Rachel walked over to her, quickly bending down to hug her as she whispered;

"I still think of you as my little protégée."

...

"Madison!" Matt called his wife as soon as he entered the apartment. She looked around to the door as she remained sat on the sofa and flicking through catalogues of department stores, glancing onto the pages of the models who were the size she had been. She was determined to have a new wardrobe when she lost the baby weight.

"Hey," Madison spoke back, smiling at him as he pulled at his tie and looked at her, wondering if she knew anything. She didn't look like she did. How did he break this to her? How did he tell her about Rachel being lost? She was in a delicate enough state already. This would tip her over the edge. "I've been thinking that the spare room we use as an office needs to be painted if we're going to turn it into a nursery. I'm thinking yellow. It's a neutral colour and it's bright."

"Madison...I've got something to tell you," Matt said in a small voice, sitting by her side and looking to her as she arched a brow and he sniffed, rubbing the back of his hand under his nose whilst Madison remained silent for another second.

"This doesn't sound promising," she said, her tone still held one of happiness, but it was soon wiped from her when she saw his expression.

"It's...Madison...I don't know how to tell you," Matt admitted quietly. "It's Rachel...she's...they think she...well...they're not sure at the moment...but...the Joker..."

"Matt," Madison whispered back, hearing the shaking in his voice as she feared the worst. She'd come to think that ever since the Joker began to strike terror into Gotham. The past few days she'd been holed up in the apartment since the death of the Commissioner. Matt continued to go to work, fearing what could happen and then rushing home every night.

Madison had called Rachel every day, making sure that she and Harvey were safe. Rachel had told her not to worry, telling her that it wouldn't be good for her godchild.

"He...she's dead, Madison," Matt finally managed to tell her and his wife instantly broke out into tears, falling into his hold as he held her back, the swelling of her stomach making it slightly awkward for him. She shook her head, unable to believe what she had heard from him. Rachel was gone.

"It's okay," Matt promised her. "It's fine, honey. It's going to be okay."

Madison didn't say anything in response to him, feeling that she would be unable to as she thought about everything her and her friend had been through.

...

Jonathan had heard the news of the Joker. The Joker who was instilling fear into the people of Gotham. He'd grumbled to himself about it, unable to believe what he was hearing. But, it wasn't fear like Jonathan thought should be used. No, it was rather tame. But, he was succeeding in what Jonathan had failed.

He'd heard about the news from Mark whilst Barry laughed to himself, shaking his head, unable to believe what he was hearing.

And then Jonathan had heard how Rachel Dawes had been murdered by him. The DA who had been a thorn in his side had finally been killed. The Joker had succeeded where Falcone had failed. Jonathan didn't feel anything when he heard the news except for curiosity. He wondered how Madison would be holding up. He knew that the two of them had been close, considering themselves good friends instead of work colleagues.

And then he wondered if Madison was in danger. She was close to Rachel. Anyone close seemed to be hurt, how Jonathan knew that.

"Mark," he hissed when he saw the guard later on in the morning. He stopped outside Crane's cell, his brow raised as he did so. "I need a favour."

"You want to start looking at weddings again?" he taunted the inmate who rolled his eyes and shook his head.

"No. I need you to make sure someone is safe. She works in the DA's office," he informed him and Mark looked slightly confused. "I know you're due to transport some prisoner there this afternoon. She's called Madison Bourne."

"Madison Bourne," he said, nodding to himself and committing her name to his memory. "Who is this Miss Bourne?"

"Mrs Bourne," Jonathan instantly corrected him. "She's married."

"She a friend?"

"Can you just make sure that she's safe?" Jonathan checked and the guard saluted him and walked away as Jonathan leant against the bars of his cell, sighing and thinking about her and what she was going through.

...

"Matt!" Madison shrieked down the phone as she sat and watched the news and her husband remained seated in his office, locked away from the outside world in a feeble attempt to work on his case. "Have you seen the news?"

"I've been working all afternoon," Matt informed her in a slow drawl. "What is it?"

"The Joker...Matt...he's blown the hospital up and he's told everyone to get out of Gotham if they want to be a part of his games." Madison snapped down the phone, pacing up and down the living room of their apartment as her hand tugged through her hair, feeling how greasy it was becoming as Matt quickly logged onto his computer and found the news.

"What do we do?" Madison worried from him and he watched as the Joker's face popped up onto his screen and he began to scurry around, shrugging into his jacket.

"I'm coming home, Mads," he promised her. "Okay? Don't go anywhere and don't open the door to anyone. Do you understand me?"

"Oh God...Matt...I'm scared..."

"No," Matt hastily said back to her. "Take deep breaths and calm down. I'm on my way, okay?"

"Okay...okay..." Madison said, trying to take his advice.

"I'm coming home, Mads."

...

"Mom and dad picked an excellent time to go on holiday," Madison spat out as soon as she called Danny and he chuckled once, escorting people onto the ferry across the island. People were fleeing in their thousands and the queue to leave was ridiculously large. He failed to believe how many people were going because of one man. He truly believed that they could defeat him, but, it seemed his optimism wasn't favoured by others.

"They did," he confirmed. "Look, Mads, what are you going to do?"

"I called Matt," she said. "He's on his way home. I've seen the pictures of the people fleeing. What are the chances of us getting out of there tonight?"

"Honestly?" Danny asked, looking through the floods of people. "Slim."

"Christ," Madison mumbled and Danny nodded to himself.

"I think you should just sit tight. I know it's easier said than done. There's no point in wandering the streets without being safe. Stay with Matt. There are thousands of officers staying behind and we're going to stop him."

"I'm due to give birth next week, Danny," Madison worried again. "What do I do then?"

"Worry about that tomorrow. For now, we're on the Joker." Danny said and Madison took a deep breath. "I do have some news for you."

"What's that?" she wondered and Danny pondered if he should tell her or not. He supposed he had to tell her now that he'd brought it up. She'd be interested.

"Crane's refused to leave Blackgate," he said and Madison felt her heart lurch slightly along with her stomach. She gulped; her mouth churning as she did so. "They're escorting prisoners but they told them to leave him locked up."

"Does he know something they don't?"

"No," Danny responded. "He's just not going."

"Mads, I'm home," Matt's voice suddenly called out and Madison stood up from the bed and looked in the mirror for a second.

"Look, I've got to go, Danny. Look after yourself."

"You too."

...

"Your girl is on leave," Mark informed Jonathan as he unlocked the cell and cuffed Boris. The man had decided to make his leave from Blackgate whilst Jonathan remained silent, sat on his bed with his hands clasped together. He nodded once at hearing that. "Her husband was the prosecuting DA and I said his wife looked familiar. He was gushing about how she was at home and looking through baby clothes."

"Thank you," Jonathan said with sincerity and Boris was handed off to another guard whilst Mark looked at Jonathan.

"Are you sure that you won't go?" he asked and Jonathan shook his head.

"Minds like the Joker's aren't complicated," he assured Mark. "He's not intending to let anyone flee Gotham. What would be the point of taking over a city if he allowed the people to flee? No, by this time tomorrow the inmates of Blackgate will either be dead or loose or back in here."

"You seem sure."

"I was a psychiatrist," Jonathan simply shrugged. "I know how people work."

...

And Jonathan was right. The next day Boris was back in his presence and the Joker had been apprehended. How he wished he worked at Arkham to see that taking place. He was sure it would have been fascinating to work with a criminal mind like his.

Unfortunately the Joker hadn't blown up the ferries. Jonathan wouldn't have his own cell back.

He shook his head before thinking back to Madison. The DA was constantly running through his mind and he struggled to really know why. She'd gone and he was stuck in Blackgate. No one was freeing him and she was never coming to see him.

Well, even he couldn't predict the future eight years from then.

...

Madison held onto the handles of the pram as she stood by the grave in the small graveyard on the outskirts of Gotham. Matt was stood to her side, his arm securely wrapped around her waist as she looked onto the small writing about Rachel Dawes.

The gathering was small; the elusive Bruce Wayne had turned up along with butler. A few other's from the DA's office had come and the new Police Commissioner. Madison and Matt stood to one side, remaining sombre before the small child in the pram began to wail. Madison excused herself from the proceeding and pushed her baby boy over to the entrance of the graveyard, picking him up and holding him tightly to her. Matt followed her a few seconds later, handing her his handkerchief which she took and wiped her eyes on, juggling their baby in one arm.

"You okay?" he asked and she managed a small nod for him.

"I thought I'd bring Joel away before he causes a commotion," she informed him and he nodded back at her, running his hand along the top of Joel's head. "The last time I saw Rachel was when I'd asked if she'd like to be his godmother."

"I'm sure she'd have been thrilled."

"She really was," Madison confirmed, smiling as she thought about the memory.

"Things will get better, Mads. I promise you," Matt assured her. "There's me, you and our son. We'll be fine."

"I know." Madison smiled at him, not thinking of eight years down the line.

...

A/N: So, next chapter we will be heading into the Dark Knight Rises which I'm stoked for, to be honest. A lot of things will change and there will be more interaction between a certain DA and Doctor! Anyway, thank you to Guest, ATLAsnaps-fan, kenzerooni, tamster127, MCRDeathNoteLover, Ferret1623 and Fangirl Karla for reviewing the previous chapter!

Let me know what you all think!


	34. Chapter 34

Eight Years Later

"Joel!" Madison yelled as she stood at the bottom of the stairs in the townhouse, her hand resting on the banister as she sighed once, crossing her legs and pushing a hand through her darkened locks. Her son was driving her to breaking point, she was sure of that. "Joel! Come on! You're going to be late for school!"

"I'm coming!" the eight year old snapped back down the steps to her as he stood in his room, placing the final book into the small rucksack which he carried. Madison nodded, satisfied with his answer as she heard him move through the hallway upstairs. Quickly, she grabbed her briefcase from the floor and adjusted the blouse which she wore, tucked into her skirt. She looked around the corridor downstairs before her sons steps echoed on the staircase.

"I told you I was ready," Joel mumbled when he saw her stood there and waiting for him, her car keys held tightly in her hand and her bag held in her other one. She raised a brow with scepticism at what he had said and he rolled his eyes, a trait he had picked up from his mother.

"Yes, well, we both know you're prone to being a little slow, aren't you?" Madison replied to him and he shook his head, his blonde locks moving back and forth on top of his head. Everything about him was like his father. Madison knew that much. But, he had the odd trait from his mother. His impatience and temper were two of them.

"I'm here now," Joel complained to her again and she nodded, motioning to the packed lunch box which she had stored on the side for him to grab. Joel quickly reached for it and followed his mother outside. He stood at the car whilst she locked up, bundling him inside of the vehicle once she was ready to go.

"And you'll remember that your dad is picking you up tonight from school, won't you?"

"Yes, mom," he drawled out. "I'm not six."

"Of course not," Madison humoured him. "He wondered if you'd want to go to the football match tonight, too. I said that he could take you as long as you did your homework first. Okay?"

"I won't have any homework," Joel promised her nodding his head quickly as his little eyes beamed up and the smile was recognisable on his face. Madison smiled as she backed out of the driveway, checking around before she did. "I never have any homework except for at weekends. It isn't the weekend, is it?"

"No," Madison agreed with him. "Just make sure that you're back before nine. I know what your father is like."

"We can't go for a drink with Simon?" he complained and Madison shook her head, making a mental note to call Matt and tell him that.

"Last time you went out you didn't get back until half past eleven and you weren't in a good mood for school. We don't a repeat of that, do we?" Madison checked with him, her lips pursed as she thought back to that day. Her son had fallen asleep during class. Matt and her had rowed for hours about it afterwards.

"You're no fun, mom," Joel complained as Madison grinned at hearing that. She was always the bad guy to him.

"I'm your mother, Joel. Mother's aren't supposed to be fun. You'll thank me for it one day," she informed him, wondering when she had turned into her mother. Danny had been right. The two of them were so similar the only difference was age.

She finally pulled up outside of the school, looking at him as he unbuckled his seat belt.

"Have a good day," she urged him, leaning over and kissing the top of his head as he grumbled and shook his head, opening the door and seeing his friends stood near the school gates.

"Bye, mom!"

...

"Boss, this came in from Blackgate." The young blonde girl called out, rushing to Madison's side and handing her a small file. The girl held two coffees in her hands, passing one to Madison as they walked side by side down to the courtroom. "Also, Will called and said that he couldn't work the Jones case. Something about his wife being in hospital."

"Okay," Madison said, sipping on the coffee quickly and feeling the heat wash through her. "Well, give the Jones case to David and then meet me in court."

Madison took the file from her hands and continued to walk forwards, intending to deal with the file from the prison afterwards.

"And thanks for the coffee, Amanda," Madison said and her young intern beamed widely, rushing off down the corridor and tugging at the red dress which she wore. Madison chuckled to herself for a moment before moving off to court, sitting down at her usual chair and drinking some more coffee. Once again, she looked through another brown file, her eyes widening when she saw the name on top of it.

Thankfully the courtroom was empty so that no one could hear her gasp out loud at what she had seen. He was attempting to gain parole. Madison shook her head at seeing that, knowing that he would never get out. The board wouldn't let him. But, she'd been notified. Maybe she should go and see him.

She shook her head at thought, realising that she shouldn't go to him. It wouldn't be wise for her. She'd gone eight years without seeing his face. She could go for another eight.

"Ms Walters," Amanda's voice suddenly whispered as she sat down beside her boss. "Your ex husband just called the office. He wanted to confirm that he was still okay to take your son out tonight."

Madison chuckled at hearing that. Matt still asked her permission after three years of separation. She was pretty sure that he had a right to make his own mind up.

"Call him back and tell him that's fine," Madison responded.

She and Matt no longer worked in the same office, the pair of them separating and moving on. He ended up working in a private practice, the pay seeming a lot better than what Madison was on. But, she couldn't defend the scum of Gotham. She didn't think that she had it in her.

...

"He says that he has information on Barrow."

Madison shook her head as soon as she heard that reason. The parole board were sat before her, the four of them looking onto the file in front of them as soon as they had called her in. She shook her head at hearing that, pacing up and down the cosy small room inside of Blackgate prison.

"I don't care. I'm not letting him out early because he has information on the last mobster in Gotham," Madison spat back at him, her hands dropping to her hips as she did so. "It isn't going to happen."

"Your opinion may be conflicted, Ms Walters. We know of the relationship-"

"-That was eight years ago!" Madison snapped back at them. "I don't have any conflicted emotions. He's as much of a threat as Barrow."

"He's changed."

"I doubt it," Madison snapped. "I want to talk to him."

"I don't think-" the woman of the group spoke and Madison shook her head.

"If the DA's office is to consider this then I want to see him. Do you understand me?" Madison barked out, not backing down on her demands. The parole board looked at each other before sighing and nodding at each other.

Madison folded her arms and nodded once she had heard that. She spent the next half an hour being handed a visitors badge and led down to the interview room where she was informed he would be in another five minutes. She sat patiently, twirling her hair around her finger before she heard the door open and she looked up, her eyes meeting his blue ones as he smirked.

Even after eight years he was smirking at her like he did when he was a young man and starting off as a successful Doctor.

"Ms Walters," he said, sitting down at the table as the guard backed off from the room and Madison looked at him, something welling up inside of her. He'd aged. She could see that much. His black hair was unkempt and still quite along. His glasses were still thin framed and defining his face along with his plump thick lips.

"I think we can skip the introductions," Madison hastily said, chills running down her spine as she did so. "Why are you doing this?"

"What can I say?" Jonathan asked her, a shrug coming from his thin shoulders as his lips continued to rise in that arrogant smirk which he so often held. "Eight years in prison is more than enough for me."

"And do you honestly think that it will work?" Madison asked him. "Barrow has secrets-"

"-Which I know-"

"-And you think that I believe you?" Madison checked with him. "You've shared a cell with him. It doesn't mean that you're now best friends, does it, Jonathan?"

"So what happened between you and your husband?" he decided to ask her, going completely off track as he searched for even the tiniest flicker of emotion.

"We're talking about Barrow," Madison responded.

"We were. Now we're talking about you," he corrected her and she shook her head.

"I don't think so," she said, her voice managing to stay even and calm as she did so. "I'm serious, Jonathan. I will fight this."

"And why would you do that?"

"Because Gotham isn't safe with you on the streets."

"I've changed," he promised her. "That's what you're scared of, isn't it? You're scared to see me after all these years in case it evokes some form of emotion. You can't lie to me, Madison."

"I don't feel anything for you, Jonathan. Stop flattering yourself," she snorted, rolling her eyes at him as he shook his head, challenging what she had just said. Madison's teeth ground together when Jonathan spoke again.

"It'll be just like Joe Chill and Carmine Falcone-"

"-I forgot you two were best friends," Madison snorted. "You're not getting out, Jonathan. Okay?"

"You sound so sure," Jonathan whistled lowly. "How's your son?"

"Jonathan," Madison sighed his name. "My personal life is nothing to do with you. I'm warning you."

"And you think that I'm scared of your warnings?" he asked from her, his body leaning closer and his head shaking back and forth whilst Madison sat back in her chair, her eyes locked on his, the pair of them refusing to give up or back down. "I've been in here for eight years, Madison. I'm getting out whether you like it or not."

"I'll fight against it," she promised him and he snorted once.

"I don't doubt it," he mumbled and she gulped, feeling her stomach dance slightly at the sight of his smile. But, she didn't have the chance to react. A rumbling noise was suddenly heard as dust began to stir from the room and Madison jumped up as Jonathan looked around. The guards quickly walked in, making sure everything was okay as explosions continued to be heard throughout the building.

"What the hell," Madison mumbled and Jonathan was stood up.

"Back to the cell, Crane," the polite guard said as the other one led Madison from the room.

The pair of them exchanged a swift glance in each other's direction as Jonathan looked at her, his eyes narrowed and a small nod escaped his neck, willing for her to remain safe regardless of whatever had just happened outside.

...

A/N: And so it begins! We're into the Dark Knight Rises and I have a few ideas as to what is going to happen. So thank you to Guest, HeavenlyCondemned, Elizabet Rex, ATLAsnaps-fan, tamster127, MCRDeathNoteLover, ZabuzasGirl and ari87 for reviewing!

Let me know what you think!


	35. Chapter 35

Madison clasped eyes on the streets of Gotham as soon as she left Blackgate. She was escorted by an officer from the premises and her jaw almost hit the floor as she took in the sights around her. Craters were filled in the road, cars overturned and some buildings destroyed, crumbling brickwork falling from the skies above as people began to hide underneath anything which could protect them.

"Do you need an escort home, ma'am?" the man asked and Madison shook her head, finding her car keys from her bag along with her phone as she rushed to her car, unlocking it and jumping in before finding Matt's number, her hands shaking as she did so.

He didn't answer her at first and so she left a voicemail, demanding to know if he and Joel were okay and asking for him to call her back. She set the phone down onto the passenger seat, driving rapidly through the streets of Gotham, managing to avoid debris and broken down cars as she went. Finally, she pulled into her driveway, noting that there wasn't much damage down her street, just a small hole of filled up concrete. The neighbours were all peering out their windows, neither one of them daring to leave the safety of their house.

Madison gulped to herself as she caught sight of the old woman next door and the pair briefly nodded at each other before she placed her phone to her ear, determined to get her ex husband to pick up and talk to her. Once again, she had no such luck.

She swore lightly under her breath, locking the door as her hands trembled and she rushed to the TV, hoping to find something out about what happened. Every single station was showing the same coverage. The football match. Madison shook her head, the remote held in her hand and pressed softly against her lips as she tried not to cry at what she was witnessing.

"Gotham!" the man had yelled out from the replay. "Take control. Take control of your city."

Instantly, the remote fell from her hands when she saw his face and bulking figure take up most of her screen. His eyes were the key to his emotion, their blandness lighting up as he looked across the crowds of people and told them of the nuclear bomb which was going to effect the city.

Quickly, she picked up the home phone again, calling Matt frantically for news on him and their son.

"Goddamn it," she spat out, throwing the device down when it became apparent that he was going to pick up. Pacing up and down the room was the only thing she had left to do. She'd tried to be rational, telling herself that wandering the streets looking for the pair of them wouldn't be intelligent. She didn't know where to look and she didn't know who else was out there. Matt would come to her. He'd bring Joel back and he'd be back with her.

The clock struck half past seven by the time she heard the knock on the door and she rushed into the hallway, ready to fling it open and sob, but, she had to be reasonable. A man had just bombed half of Gotham and she was in charge at the DA's office. Who knew who it could be? So she went into the small living room, checking the window as she heard the banging commence again.

"Madison!" he snapped. "It's me! Open up!"

She sighed, his angry tone slightly soothing to her in this time of panic. Unlocking the door and opening it to see him and Joel stood there was all that she needed. She bundled her son inside, her arms wrapping around him as soon as Matt shut the door.

"Joel...sweetie...oh...honey...you're safe," she cried and Joel remained tight in her embrace, not sure how to respond to his mother's persistent hugs and sobs. He wasn't sure how to act at all. He didn't really understand what was going on.

"Did you see the man at the football, mom?" he asked and she nodded, her lips kissing his cheek quickly as Matt dropped his hand onto her shoulder, squeezing slightly before she stood up again, straightening herself out and glaring at him as he knew she was angry.

"Why don't you go into the kitchen and get a pop tart, squirt?" he asked his son and Joel wasn't dense. He knew that he was being dismissed for his parents to row. He'd spent a long time with their attitude towards each other.

"I dropped my phone," Matt instantly said when he left them be and Madison bit her tongue, giving him a chance to explain before she laid into him. But, she didn't feel like laying into him. Not at that moment in time. She'd do it another day. "I was getting Joel out of there and I dropped it. I didn't go back. I just had to get him out of there."

"Okay," Madison whispered back to him, her hand holding her chin as she walked into the living room and Matt followed her, standing in the doorway as he watched her close the curtains and lock the windows.

"No telling off?" he wondered and she glowered to herself.

"Would it help?" she snapped at him. "I'm just glad that you brought him back here safe...and you..."

Matt coughed once, knowing that Madison didn't do sentiment that much. She'd closed herself up during the latter years of their short live marriage and she'd never opened back up when they divorced. She'd become a stiff DA who lived at work.

"Well, he was pretty shaken up. I told him everything would be okay," Matt said softly. "Where were you when the explosions went off?"

Madison chuckled darkly, slumping onto the sofa and placing her hand onto her forehead, closing her eyes and feeling the effects of a migraine coming on.

"Where was I," she drawled out. "I was at Blackgate. The parole board wanted to cut me a deal."

"What on?"

"Releasing Jonathan in return for information on the most notorious criminal in Gotham at the moment. It was like the Chill case all over again."

"What did you say?" Matt asked her and she noted the intrigue in his voice before she shook her head.

"I said no," she told him. "Besides, they won't be bothered about that with the rise of the masked man, will they? The news says that most of the city's cops are buried underground. I can't get a hold of Danny..."

"He'll be fine," Matt promised her. "Your brother is strong."

"I'm still worried," she responded to him and he nodded. Of course she would be. It was her brother. Slowly, she sat back on the sofa and closed her eyes for a moment. "What does this mean, Matt? How is he giving Gotham back to the people?"

"I don't know," Matt whispered, sitting beside her as Joel entered the living room, looking at his parents in their rare form of unity.

"Did you want a pop tart?" he asked his parents and Matt shook his head as Madison remained silent, looking as if she was about to burst out crying once again.

"No, sport," he whispered. "Why don't you go up to your room and watch a film? We'll be up in a bit, okay?"

"Okay," Joel agreed, stuffing his food into his mouth and then walking away from the pair of them and trampling up the steps to his room, looking at his DVD collection.

"They've closed the bridges to Gotham. There's no getting out. I've looked into already," he said to her slowly. "We have to sit here and sit tight. The bomb...seeing him break that man's neck...we might be saved, Madison. Something might happen."

"How can you be so sure?" she snorted. "The Batman isn't going to come and save us, Matt. He's not been here in eight years."

"I know," Matt agreed with her in a whisper, his hand slowly resting on top of hers and she looked at the contact.

"Stay here tonight," Madison pleaded with him. "For me and Joel."

"Whatever you need."

...

Jonathan had been in his cell when he heard of the news of the masked man they called Bane and he wondered what he was doing with Gotham. He wanted to give it back to the people. Even Jonathan couldn't quite understand what he meant when he said that and he was a psychiatrist.

Boris had come up with all types of theories which Jonathan had rejected from him, his mind too active with the thoughts of what had happened between Madison and him when she was at the jail.

And now a man had threatened Gotham. Jonathan knew something bad was going to happen. He just didn't know when and how it would affect Madison.

...

A/N: Next chapter and he's out onto the streets of Gotham. Up there as a Judge. Love it. Anyway, thank you to anyone reading and anyone who has reviewed thus far. Please do let me know what you think!


	36. Chapter 36

"Calm down," Matt demanded from his ex wife as she paced up and down the living the next morning, her hands tugging at strands of hair mercilessly as the TV blared out the breaking news and Matt stood in the doorway whilst Madison shook her head at him, quickly pointing to the TV and then back to herself.

"How can I calm down?" she bellowed at him and he took a deep breath, folding his arms whilst she resisted the urge to throw something at the TV at what she was hearing. "He's out on the streets somewhere! He's out somewhere and I don't know where and I don't know if he has any intention of coming for me, do I? I have no way of knowing what he is going to do!"

"If he does come for you then he won't do anything, will he?" Matt barked back at her, trying to make her see sense as she folded her arms and looked at him with worry. He shook his head and sauntered into the living room, picking up the TV remote and turning it off as Madison looked at him, wondering how he had jumped to that conclusion.

"How do you know?" Madison asked and Matt snorted, a roll of his eyes coming out with it as he looked back into her green eyes with his grey ones. The pair of them knew why he wouldn't hurt her. Madison was just hysterical and horrifically so.

"He's been locked away in Blackgate for eight years, Mads," Matt informed her. "He's not going to do anything to you, is he? He's probably still madly in love with you."

"No," Madison replied, shaking her head quickly, her curls moving over her shoulder as she did so. She pulled at the material of the black dress which she wore and shook her head, holding her arms tightly around her body as she did so. She didn't believe him for one minute. She'd told Jonathan that he wasn't going to get parole. Why wouldn't he want revenge on her?

"He never loved me," Madison informed Matt. "Jonathan never knew how to love. He knew how to manipulate me into loving him by showing me kindness. But love? No...we never had that."

"Crane was sick, anyway," Matt said to her and she shrugged. He was mentally ill. She didn't think he was sick. She was sure that he knew exactly what he had done to Gotham and she was sure that he felt no remorse for doing it. Like she'd told him, his moral compass was out of touch. His sense of right and wrong was mixed up and made no sense to an unsuspecting person.

"And I'm in charge of the DA's office, aren't I?" Madison spoke rhetorically and Matt arched a brow in her direction, wondering what that had to do with anything. She continued to explain when she noted his look of wonder. "I put those people into Blackgate. I put the scum of Gotham away. You heard what this Bane said, Matt. I used the Dent Act...and that was a lie...it was all a lie. I'm...he'll think that I'm corrupt...that I'm as bad as the Commissioner."

"What are you saying?" Matt asked her and Madison quivered on the spot which she was stood on as Matt knew full well what she was saying.

"I'm saying that if they find out about me then I'm screwed, Matt. Whatever he has planned isn't good for those of us who have put these men behind bars."

"How will they find you, Mads?" he wondered from her and she shrugged.

"My address will be at the DA's office in City Hall. It won't be hard, will it?"

"I think you're worrying about nothing," Matt informed her. "There are plenty of other people who these men will want to hurt. Not just the DA who put them behind bars."

"Regardless, Jonathan will find out where I live." Madison said. "I need to be going...you need to look after Joel. Take him back to your apartment."

"And leave you?" Matt chuckled, shaking his head as he did so and then he snapped at her. "If you think I'm going anywhere then you're mistaken. Do you understand me?"

"No," Madison hissed at him. "You're going to keep our son safe."

"And I'm going to keep you safe," Matt said. "Get Joel to pack a bag and we will go back to my apartment. If you're sure that we're not safe here."

"We're not."

"There you go then," Matt said. "Go and pack a bag."

Madison nodded in agreement, walking up the steps and into her bedroom whilst Matt went to help his son pack a bag. As she was packing a knock on the door was heard and she moved into the hallway, hearing her name being called as Matt found her.

"Joel," he spoke to his son, "hide under the bed, okay, son? Just stay there until we say so."

Madison moved to the top of the stairs as Matt placed his hand onto her elbow, stopping her from going as he dropped his hand onto her elbow.

"What are you doing?"

"Ms Walters, if you don't open this door then we will break it down!"

"I told you that I wasn't safe. You should have known that, Matt," she spoke as she moved down the stairs and Matt followed her, stopping her from opening the door as the banging continued and she fought against him as he shook his head at her.

"You can't open the door to them." He hissed and she snatched her arm from his hold.

"What do you want me to do? Stand here and wait for them. We have Joel to think about, Matt. You need to look after him."

"Madison!" Matt snapped as his ex hastily unlocked the door to reveal two tall men stood there, their arms folded as Matt stood behind her, his hand on her back as she looked at them with her stubborn set jaw.

"What?" she snapped and they chuckled.

"You've been summoned to court." One informed her and Madison rolled her eyes. How ironic. She wasn't going to give these men the benefit of seeing her as nervous as she was. They had no right in doing so. She stood tall, her arms folded and her heart rate sky high as Matt shook his head.

"Court?" he checked with them. "What are you talking about?"

"The Judge will explain when you get there," he spoke. "Now, we have no need for you Mr, so back off, would you?"

"Not when I don't know what you're going to do to her," Matt said back to them, glaring through his eyes as Madison turned back to look at him, shaking her head and resting a hand onto his chest.

"Joel," she spoke to him. "He's more important than me. Look after him."

"We don't have all day," one snapped. "Either she comes or we just shoot you, Mr. We don't give a toss."

"I'm coming," Madison spat at them before looking back at Matt who was shaking his head at her. He was stuck in between the devil and the deep blue sea. He didn't know what to do. He didn't know who to choose.

"Look after him, Matt. Okay? Look after him and tell him that I love him..." Madison pleaded, placing her hand onto his cheek and slowly standing on her toes, kissing him on the cheek as his eyes began to tear up at seeing her.

"I'll find you." He assured her. "I'll get Joel somewhere safe and I'll find you."

"Okay, that's it," one of the men spoke, grabbing Madison by her arm and dragging her from the house, down the steps and onto the street as she continued to look at Matt. Joel appeared by his side suddenly, crying after his mother as he saw her dragged down the street, fighting all the way as Matt stopped his son from running off to her, picking him up into his arms and holding him tightly as Madison felt her eyes become wet at the sight of them.

"You can stop dragging me," Madison hissed, snatching her arm from his hold and walking in between them as they entered City Hall. But, it didn't look anything like the place which she had worked in multiple times. People huddled on the floor beneath the main foyer at the bottom of the steps, looking around as Madison felt herself being pushed onto the floor next to an old man dressed in his bathrobe. Everyone looked around but no one spoke as the slamming of a gavel echoed throughout the marbled room and Madison winced at hearing it, wondering what the hell was going.

"Bane's got a Judge in there," the old man informed her. He didn't look scared or worried about anything. No, he seemed serene. She didn't understand it. "It's a kangaroo court, ma'am."

"What's he doing?" Madison whispered as a guard passed them and glared at them. The man waited until he had passed until he spoke back to her.

"He's sentencing the corrupt of Gotham," he said with sarcasm. "Death or Exile. Either one is guaranteed death. Exile is walking onto the rivers ice. You'd fall through before getting halfway across."

"And everyone here...that's why they're here?"

"As far as I can see, ma'am," he said to her and Madison gulped, looking around for an escape before she heard a roar.

"I don't have all day, Mr Williams. Death or Exile?"

She froze when she heard it, shaking her head as she unknowingly stood up, moving over to the steps and looking up them as a guard placed his hand onto her shoulder.

"Your time will be soon, honey," he insisted and she shook her head at him, looking up into his unkind eyes as she did so.

"Who is the Judge?" she demanded to know, her voice rising and resulting in glances from the other people around from her.

"None of your business," the man sniped at her.

"Who is he?" Madison barked, walking up the steps as the man followed her, grabbing onto her hand and dragging her back down to him.

"So eager, aren't you?" he checked with her. "Hold the next one," he demanded the man at the bottom of the steps and he nodded; more interested on chewing his gum as he did so. "We have a willing volunteer next."

Madison allowed him to push her up into the open space and she looked around, her eyes widening as she did so. She shook her head as people parted through the crowds, allowing her to be pushed forwards as she stood in the small queue of people to be sentenced, jeering coming from the crowds as they looked at them.

She moved to the side, looking up onto the stacks of desk and furniture laced in strings and anything which could be found. Finally she saw the chair on the top and the man sat behind it, his eyes glaring onto a piece of paper in front of him as his gavel hung lazily in his hand and Madison froze, a small ounce of her hoping for him to save.

Hoping that she'd meant something to him once.

...

A/N: Cliff-hanger, I know! I'll update later on so do let me know what you think in the mean time! Will Jonathan help her? Let me know what you reckon! And thank you to everyone reading and everyone who has reviewed! Means a lot guys!


	37. Chapter 37

Jonathan felt his stomach lurch forwards as soon as he saw her being dragged into the chair, jeers erupting around the room at the mere sight of her. They didn't even know what she had done and already they were willing to condemn her. Jonathan felt his glasses slip down his nose slightly whilst he continued to stare at her and she looked back up at him.

He couldn't do it.

He couldn't speak about her to the people around. He couldn't allow them to sit there and yell at her when they didn't know her. They didn't know the way she had been eight years ago. They didn't know the way she had been loyal to him or the way she had defended him from Rachel when she was suspicious. The Madison he knew was the one he had been fantasising about whilst he was stuck in Arkham and Blackgate. She was the girl who had loved him.

Yes, she had denied him the option to leave Blackgate and she'd moved on with another man. She'd had a son with him and become the head of the DA's office. She had changed. Jonathan knew that, he just wasn't willing to accept it.

"Dr Crane?" a sudden voice boomed and Jonathan looked downwards, the sight of the masked man coming into his view as his eyes glared onto the man atop of the mountains of desks and other pieces of furniture. He noted Madison from the side, her eyes widening as she saw Bane move through the crowds, his arms folded against his bulging chest and his legs set apart, commanding the room around him.

"There are trials to be had, Dr Crane," Bane shouted out. "This woman is next, is she not?"

"I declare a recess," Jonathan suddenly shouted out and Bane chuckled, the mechanical sound haunting through his mask whilst Madison sat on the edge of the gold tinted seat, her eyes full of fear and her face pale white. Jonathan could see that she was trying to stay strong. She was trying to prove her worth as the head of Gotham's prosecuting team. He could just see through her. He always had been able to.

Jonathan moved down the furniture as Bane stepped forwards, his hands hanging by his side and his jaw set firmly as he continued to look at the Judge.

"What is this?" Bane snapped; his voice low enough so that no one around them could hear. The members of the court spoke amongst themselves whilst Madison watched Jonathan. She took in the way the long coat sat proudly on his shoulders, feathers falling from its stuffing. The coat was regal, setting Jonathan apart from the rest of Gotham. He'd somehow managed to get into favour with Bane.

"The woman," Jonathan murmured back, "Madison Walters. I wish to have her removed from this process."

"And why would this be?" Bane wondered, knowing full well why. Jonathan looked like a weak individual. Bane had seen his type before. They were all talk and full of bravado and their own self importance. But, once a man bigger than them came along they were like mice. "I've heard Ms Walters is the head of the DA's office. She's the woman who used Harvey Dent's murder as a way to place the men of Blackgate into their jail cells. She's the woman in charge of the oppression. Why would I remove her from trial?"

"I've done everything which you've asked of me," Jonathan instantly said to him. "I've sat here and done as you'd asked. You're doing this to keep me at bay and stop my mind from wandering. I know that much. You should grant me her."

"You speak as if this woman is a possession," Bane hissed and Jonathan recoiled slightly at the violent sound. "She's nothing but the corrupt. She's the one sat on top of the rich and wealthy of Gotham, claiming the high ground when she is nothing more than a commoner. She's on par with the Commissioner. She's to be tried and that is simple."

"And if I refuse to try her?" Jonathan snapped back and Bane looked slightly entertained at the thought of this man defying him and going about his own business. This was Bane's Gotham now. No one else had any say in the way it was run.

"I find someone and we kill her here and now," Bane drawled. "And then we kill you, Doctor. Your apparent infatuation with this woman will do nothing to appease me."

"I'm not the type of man to beg," Jonathan spoke back, his voice low as his eyes darted back to Madison.

"But for her you'd do anything?" Bane checked and Jonathan allowed a stiff nod to escape his head as Bane chuckled and shook his head. "Your weakness for her is alarming, Doctor. She's a problem which needs to be taken care of. Allow me to do the honours," Bane said, his hand resting on Jonathan's shoulder before he moved past him and stood at the front of the Court. The tower of furniture behind him didn't seem as imposing as he stood there, his arms outstretched wide and his eyes looking around the people of the court.

Jonathan remained stood where he was, his eyes locked onto Madison who was watching Bane, fear rising into her features eventually as she watched Bane.

"Madison Walters!" Bane yelled out, walking up and down the stack of furniture. "The woman who has used Harvey Dent's Act as a reason to place the oppressed into their prison. She's the woman who has upheld the lie which we have all seen. The woman who has sat on her throne and looked down onto the men of Blackgate. This woman," Bane pointed at her and Jonathan gulped loudly, his feet stuck to the ground as Madison allowed a tear to roll down her cheek. She had no idea how she was going to get out of this mess. "This woman is the most corrupt in the whole of Gotham. Now, I give you a question, members of this court. Death or Exile?"

Shouts exploded through the room as Bane raised a hand to silence them, looking onto Madison as he spoke.

"I would say that Exile is a fair punishment."

Madison was unaware as to what was happening, her eyes glancing around as she felt a hand grab her upper arm and drag her from the chair she had been sat in as her eyes locked onto Jonathan and she could have sworn she saw something in his eyes.

Bane looked over to Jonathan, grinning from behind his mask.

"I'm not an inconsiderate man," he informed Jonathan. "You may take half an hour to speak to the woman. Humour her and lie to her. Tell her how things shall be okay. I shall grant you that as your wish."

Jonathan shook his head but stormed past Bane, his feet hitting the ground with haste as he pushed past the crowds and down into the small corridor where Madison had been taken. He looked around the corridor which was being patrolled by men with large guns.

"The girl who just came in," Jonathan snapped out. "Where is she?"

"Room as the end," the man spoke and Jonathan rushed down, throwing the door open. Clearly they were using offices as holding cells for people who has been exiled. He shook his head as he thought about it.

"Jonathan," Madison sighed his name when she saw him and he shut the door, locking it from the inside as he saw her leant against the wall. "What just happened? I don't...I don't know what to do..."

"I know," Jonathan said to her. "I tried to talk to Bane. He wouldn't listen to me."

"What?" Madison snapped at him. "You mean...I'm...there's no way out? He's going to kill me? Jonathan...you can't...please..."

"Don't," Jonathan snapped quickly at her, looking away and feeling a lump form in his throat. "There is no reasoning with a man like Bane. You should know that, Madison. I tried."

"Oh my God," Madison sighed, the realisation hitting her as her knees gave out and she slumped down the wall, her hands holding her head. "I can't...I can't die...please...no..."

"Madison," Jonathan said her name again, walking over to her and sitting by her side, his arm wrapping around her shoulder as he pushed his glasses further up onto his nose. "I'm sorry."

She snorted once and shook her head, looking into his blue eyes as she did so. And she saw it. She saw that he was sorry. She'd never seen him like at her like he was doing. The only time she could get emotion out of him was before she was being sent to her death.

"I wish I could save you. I wish I could do something. I...I don't know what to do...I don't know what to say...Madison..."

"There's nothing you can say, is there?" Madison responded; her voice small and a whisper as Jonathan moved closer to her, his side against hers.

"If I could get you out of here then I would," Jonathan promised her. "He won't listen to me."

"No, he wouldn't," Madison whispered.

"Where did it all go wrong, Madison?" Jonathan mumbled. "What happened?"

"You decided to work with a criminal mastermind and attempt to poison all of Gotham," she said and Jonathan snorted, nodding once and rolling his eyes at hearing her. She had a point. "Don't you think that I've thought about it? I've often spent hours upon end; wondering what would have happened if you hadn't have done it. I...I sometimes wished things could be different."

"You did?"

"But what's the point in wishing?" Madison asked him. "You did it and it was too late. I still don't understand. You had...you were successful, Jonathan. You were the head of an Asylum and well respected. You went from all that to a common criminal."

"It wasn't really me who was in charge at the time," he whispered and her mouth fell open in slight understanding.

"Scarecrow," she mumbled and heard his sharp intake of breath. "He wasn't really a fan of mine."

"No," Jonathan chuckled darkly. "He wasn't."

"It seems that I don't have many fans now," Madison mumbled. "Everything seems to be a lie...Jonathan...I need you to do me a favour."

"What?"

"You need to tell Matt that I love him, okay?" Madison checked and Jonathan quickly looked away before he felt her hand on his cheek, drawing his gaze back onto hers and her eyes narrowed sternly in his direction. "Jonathan, I need you to tell him. And Joel...tell him that I love him...my little boy...he's...just tell him...okay?"

"Okay," Jonathan agreed with her, slowly moving his hand onto the top of hers and lacing her fingers into his as she smiled weakly at him.

"You don't hate me?" Jonathan checked with her and she shook her head.

"How can I hate you?" she asked from him. "After everything which you've done...I can't hate you...there's no point...I still..."

Jonathan's chest rumbled lightly when he saw her look away and he continued to watch her.

"What?" Jonathan asked her. "You still what?"

"You know," Madison whispered. "I still love you, Jonathan. I always have and there's nothing I can do about it."

"Madison," Jonathan whispered to her, his free hand brushing her cheek, his fingers skimming around her face, parting her soft lips as he took in every single nook and cranny of her features. She lazily dragged his finger from her lips, leaning closer to him and pressing her lips against the corner of his mouth, her eyes watering as she felt the coldness of his familiar skin against her lips. Jonathan sighed, feeling content for the moment as he moved his head to the side, sweeping her lips against his softly as his thumb stroked her cheek.

She pulled away after a moment, her forehead leaning against his and her eyes shut. His blue orbs remained open as she hiccupped softly and her breath tickled against his face.

"I'm scared," she simply admitted to him. "I'm scared of dying."

"I know," Jonathan said. It was the only thing which he could say to her. He didn't know. He had no idea how she felt. For all of time in Gotham he had never feared death. He'd only been frightful of failing.

"Stay with me," Madison pleaded with him, tucking his black hair behind his ear and feeling the stubble resting on his jaw bone.

"Of course," he said stiffly and he felt Madison move into his lap, her head resting against his shoulder as she finally gave up. She wanted her last moment to be with him. She wanted to feel his heart beat against her skin, his breath tickling her ear as his lips dropped onto her temple.

She loved Matt. She always had done.

Just not like she loved Jonathan.

...

A/N: I've got one more chapter left to come on this and then finished another Crane/OC story! Anyhow, I would like to thank my loyal readers and reviewers in the form of ATLAsnaps-fan, HowlynMad, Megushie, Fangirl-Karla, Zee de la Vallerie, Ariddle-Ascare and MCRDeathNoteLover!

Let me know what you think!


	38. Chapter 38

Madison didn't know how long she was sat with Jonathan before the door opened wide and a man stood before her, the gum moving around in his mouth as he held onto the large gun in his hands. Jonathan felt his grip increase around her waist before she looked at him, kissing him swiftly on the cheek as he shook his head and she stood up from him with the most ungraceful of movements. Straightening out the simple black dress she wore, she looked at the man whilst Jonathan stood along with her, his hand on the small of her back, reassuring circles stroked into the material of the dress.

"Bane says you're to be taken with the other prisoners," he informed her and she nodded. "He also says that the Court needs to be set up again, Judge."

"You can tell Bane that I require another ten minutes," Jonathan said and the man chuckled, shaking his head whilst Madison sniffed.

"He said that's not possible. You've had enough time with your girl," he promised the Doctor before moving forwards, his hand wrapping around Madison's wrist and pulling her forwards. Jonathan remained stood on the spot, moving after her before another guard blocked his way, his gun moving out and stopping Jonathan from following where Madison was being dragged off to.

"Jonathan!" Madison shouted back to him as she was pushed into a crowd of people including the old man she had met earlier. She continued to look behind her, fighting against the guards as they refused to allow Jonathan past them to where she was. "Remember to tell Matt and Joel! Please!"

"I will!" Jonathan called out to her, his ice blue eyes lightening up as he saw her begin to cry, the fear already straining at her features as she pushed against the burly man, not wanting to let Jonathan leave her line of sight. For all that he was and all that he had done, she didn't care. None of it mattered to her when she saw him. When she saw him stood there, baring himself to her and telling her how he was sorry. He'd let his guard down and Madison couldn't do anything other than love him for it.

"Jonathan...I..." Madison struggled to call it out to him, not sure if she could do it through the situation which she found herself in. She wanted to say nothing more than how much she loved him. It just didn't feel like the right time. She was used to saying it privately and alone, not somewhere where people could hear her shouts ring into their ears. "I love you!" she finally snapped it out, realising she wouldn't get the chance to again. She'd said it to him before. She just needed him to know how much.

"Madison!" Jonathan called out. Those three words. Those three words which would torment him for the rest of his life. He watched as she was finally dragged around the corner, the final glance at her before he allowed the moisture to pool into his eyes, realising that he'd missed his chance.

...

Jonathan had an idea where he would find the elusive Matt and Joel. He'd worked in City Hall for being a Judge and had access to records on a lot of people. It wasn't hard to track down Matt's apartment. He knocked on the wooden door, realising how everyone wasn't moving from the safety of their own homes. They were too scared to do so and the worst part was Bane's men on the street.

He coughed lightly before the door cracked open slightly and Jonathan saw a blonde haired man stood there, his jaw firm and his eyes harsh as he looked at Jonathan, wondering who he was. It didn't take him long, of course. He knew Crane from anywhere. He just looked ragged and older than when he had last seen his picture.

"What do you want?" Matt spat at Jonathan who remained stern, not allowing his emotions to get the better of him. If he did that then he'd look weak and Jonathan Crane was anything but weak.

"I take no pleasure in being here," Jonathan drawled out. "Let me assure you of that."

"You can't assure me of anything," Matt hissed, still keeping the door closed as far as he could before losing sight of the man's gaze. "Madison isn't here."

"I know," Jonathan told him. "I came to tell you about her."

Matt seemed to shiver at hearing Jonathan speak like that. He stood up tall once again, opening the door wider but not allowing Jonathan to enter his home. Jonathan noted the way he gulped loudly, his neck straining as his eyes began to soften with worry.

"What happened to her?" Matt whispered hoarsely and Jonathan coughed.

"Bane. He exiled her...the mock court...I'm sure you've heard of it..."

"It's all anyone can talk about," Matt replied in a mutter. "He...you preside over it. Didn't you save her?"

"I tried," Jonathan assured him. "I tried to stop him. There is no reasoning with a man like Bane."

"So you let him make her walk over that ice?" Matt spat out, his voice full of rage as his hands curled into fists in a feeble attempt to restrain himself from hitting the Doctor whilst his son slept. "You did nothing to save her."

"There is no stopping a man like Bane when he has his mind made up. I couldn't save her," Jonathan defended himself and Matt shook his head, a shaking hand moving to rest on his forehead as he thought about Madison, alone and petrified during the trial.

"So you did nothing?" Matt spat. "You didn't even try to defend her. You didn't try to stop them from taking her."

"If I tried then I'd be dead at the bottom of the river too," Jonathan replied and Matt shook his head, pointing at Jonathan who remained calm and collected.

"No!" he snapped. "You did nothing! You...you were the death of her...in the end her undeniable love for you got her killed..."

"You're looking for someone to blame and using me as the answer," Jonathan informed Matt. "Her love for me didn't get her killed. The fact that she was the head of the DA's office did."

"No, but if you loved her then you'd have saved her...or you'd have died trying..." Matt said and Jonathan scoffed, rolling his eyes from behind his glasses.

"Like you tried to save her?" Jonathan wondered. "I know how she got to the courthouse. The guards told me how you stepped aside and allowed them to take her-"

"-We have a son!" Matt interrupted. "We have a son who needs looking after!"

"The principle still stands," Jonathan said to Matt. "You claim to love her."

"I do."

"Yet you are divorced from her and you stood to one side and did nothing to get her back. You can stand there spluttering about how much you love her. At the end of the day you don't. Love means following someone to their death and you didn't. You wouldn't have taken a bullet for her and neither would I. Love is a childish emotion which isn't real. It's a myth," Jonathan declared, glaring at Matt who took in what he had said and he couldn't help but think how the Doctor was right. He should have stopped them. He should have done more.

"Blaming me won't stop you from guilty about her," Jonathan promised Matt. "She wanted me to tell you how she loved you and her son. That is the only reason as to why I am stood on your doorstep. Because she asked me to."

Matt nodded, scratching his neck as hot tears flooded his grey eyes and Jonathan began to walk down the hallway before Matt shouted out to him;

"Were you there?" he asked loudly and Jonathan stood still, turning his head to the side to look at the man as he spoke. "When she...when it happened?"

"No," Jonathan replied and Matt winced, the thought of Madison being alone during her final minutes bringing him to the verge of hysterical.

"But you were there before...she spent her final time with you..."

"Yes," Jonathan spoke back and Matt snorted, shaking his head.

"Fitting, really," Matt managed to snort. "She spent time with the man she had always loved...the man who never deserved her..."

"I don't think anyone really deserved her," Jonathan declared before turning around again and walking off, leaving Matt to slam the door shut and go into his own personal dark abyss.

...

Jonathan often spent his nights wandering around the deserted streets of Gotham, his hands in his pockets and his eyes stuck onto the floor as he thought back to the past.

His first time meeting Madison, her words stuck in his mind.

"_Maybe your secretary could learn a thing or two about manners, Doctor Crane. And maybe you could pick some up somewhere along the line."_

Even he had to admit that she had been a firry individual when she was wound up.

_"I don't rush down to any Asylum because I feel insecure, you know." "I take it that I'm special, then?" he checked and she picked up her coffee, still sipping on it as her lips refused to fall into a flat line. "Perhaps," she admitted to him_

He didn't know what kind of a man would have refused the advances of such a girl like Madison. She was pretty, he'd give her that. She wasn't stunning and she certainly hated getting up early to make herself presentable.

Jonathan took a seat on the rocks which looked onto the river of Gotham, wondering what was on the other side of the closed bridge. He assumed it would be a fresh start, a world which Bane would have left alone. He could only imagine how wonderful it would feel to get away from Gotham. But in a way he felt the opposite. Maybe if the bomb went off then it would end his misery. It would end the torture of sitting in a mock courtroom and condemning his brain to boredom. Maybe it would cure the never ending thoughts running around in his mind.

The Scarecrow had been silent for a while, not bothering Jonathan that much due to dullness. No, instead it was her voice which ran around in his head. Her lingering words echoed throughout his ears and he thought back to the times he had with her.

He knew they were gone and he knew she had gone. In some way Matt had been right. He should have done something. If he loved her then he would have risked his own life to save her and not bowed down to Bane's every order.

_"You're worried for me," Jonathan commented once and Madison rolled her eyes at him, grinning at him as she did so and he looked at her with intrigue. He'd never seen anyone concerned about him before. It was a strange feeling which he was getting at the thought. "Of course I am," she responded. "You should know that I care about you."_

As Jonathan looked onto the darkened sky he wondered where she was. He wondered if there was an afterlife or if there was just one life. Somewhere deep down he hoped for the former option. If there was then maybe he could make up where he had gone wrong eight years ago.

...

A/N: Finished! I'm hoping that it was a fitting ending and that I kept Crane in character as that has been the mission all along. Realistically, the happy ending just didn't work I think. Anyway, I would love to thank anyone who has spent the time in reading this to the end, seriously, thanks you so much for sticking with it!

And then to Zee de la Valliere, ATLAsnaps-fan, xxxjetgirlxxx, Mika927, Elizabet Rex, .williams, Indigo Scrawl, MCRDeathNoteLover, ZabuzasGirl and ari87 for reviewing the previous chapter.

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